Some Women Like That
by Laurelin the Pale
Summary: Since Mick won't even discuss it, Beth seeks Josef's advice on the intimate details of vampire/human relationships and ends up with more than she bargained for. Beth/Josef and later Mick/Beth/Josef.
1. Chapter 1

Josef just won't leave my muse alone. As always, I appreciate feedback and honest critique. Hope you enjoy.

- Laurelin

--

Chapter 1

Josef was really starting to regret his agreement to look out for Beth while Mick was in Aspen for the week with his new celebrity client. The caller ID on his cell phone clearly indicated Beth's number and it had hardly been twelve hours since Mick had left town. What could she possibly need already?

"Josef's human-sitting service, Josef speaking. How may I help you?" he said sarcastically. It was fun to try to irritate Beth, and for that matter, Mick as well.

"Hi Josef, it's Beth," she said sounding a little uncertain of herself. _Interesting._

"If you hadn't told me, I never would have guessed. I answer my phone that way all the time."

"Oh, right. Um, would you have time after you are done with business for me to come by and talk to you?" Beth was nervous, and Josef was dying to know why. Well, okay, he was already dead, but he loved playing mind games with the living, especially the ones as perky as Mick's girlfriend.

"Everything should be finished here by midnight, unless I have to kill someone in which case it will be later, but assuming all is well I can swing by your place on my way home."

He could almost see Beth nodding on the other end of the line. "Yeah, that would be fine. See you then. Oh, and thank you."

"No need to thank me. I have unfortunately agreed to be at your beckon call for the next week, so really, why wait to get started?" he quipped.

"You don't even know what I want to discuss Josef. You might enjoy it," Beth said in a sultry voice before the line clicked as she hung up.

"Well, now, Miss Turner," he said to his empty office, "just what _do_ you have on your mind?"

--

As he parked his Ferrari outside her building, Josef decided to make a conscious effort to keep this professional. He had finally admitted that he was starting to like Beth more than was good for his friendship with Mick. The last time Josef had been here she had asked him to kill someone to protect Mick, which he had done, but her easy acceptance of doing what needed to be done in such a situation gave Josef a new respect for her. She could keep their secret and she was loyal, two qualities he admired very much. Josef looked forward to the day when Mick finally comes to his senses and turns her; she'll make a great vamp. It didn't hurt that she was gorgeous in addition to everything else, though unlike his usual relationships with women in the last fifty years, he found himself able to look up from her breasts long enough to appreciate her mind. A rare thing indeed.

Straightening his tie while waiting for her to answer the door, he heard her heartbeat and the sound of her high heels on the floor even before she opened it. Unprepared was not sufficient to describe how he felt when he saw her standing there in the doorway. Beth's blonde hair was full of soft, loose curls and she was wearing a dark green silk blouse with the top buttons open enough to show a hint of her breasts and a sleek matching skirt slit up to mid-thigh. It wasn't quite formal dinner party wear, but it was breathtaking on her. Enough to convince him that he wished it was a dinner party outfit… for a vampire's idea of dinner at least. The smell of her vanilla shampoo, a hint of perfume, and the underlying scent that was just her was a delicious combination that he wanted more of, but he suddenly remembered that this was supposed to be professional. Looking out for his best friend's girlfriend was his job, not trying to steal her for himself in Mick's absence. Josef hoped that he hadn't been staring open-mouthed as long as he thought he had before recovering enough to meet her nervous eyes.

"Good evening, Beth. Were we going out?" He gestured to her outfit. "You didn't mention that in your call."

"No, no. Please come in," she said as she looked away, her heartbeat betraying her nerves, but a quick scenting of the air reassured him they were alone. "There was a new club downtown that opened tonight, a little more upscale than the usual, and my editor sent me to cover the celebrity scene. I just got home."

The floral motif of her apartment wasn't exactly his taste, but it was nice enough he thought as he looked over her living room and waited for her to let him in on the secret of why he'd been summoned. More importantly, the décor provided a mundane distraction from her in that stunning outfit. "So what can Uncle Josef do for you that is so important I had to postpone my dinner?" Although he was only mildly hungry, he wanted to see Beth's reaction since she was well aware of what was on his menu every night, and he wasn't disappointed when her pulse increased.

She looked uncertain as she paused for a moment, as if considering her answer. "I'm sorry, I wasn't sure if you'd be hungry now. Mick doesn't want me to keep any blood here for him and…"

The distance between them closed as he stepped closer to her, completely unable to resist the urge to push her buttons. Even if it was just for his amusement, he enjoyed her reactions to him, and was curious about just how far Mick had let her into the vampire world on the deeply personal level. Now was his opportunity to find out as Beth backed up until the couch stopped her unconscious retreat. "I don't like that cheap morgue take-out blood anyway. I prefer mine fresh from the vein of a willing, beautiful woman." _Screw professionalism, this is way too entertaining. She might be backing away, but her body is saying yes in every other way._

"Good, because that's what I wanted to talk to you about." Beth's voice was shaky but he could hear the sincerity in it; she wasn't just playing his little game, and that detail was what made Josef be the one who backed away next.

"Does Mick know you're doing this?" Josef asked as he sat down on the couch right behind where Beth was standing.

"Doing what? Talking to you?" She tried to cover her reaction, but obviously she wasn't fully aware of the range of non-verbal communication vampires were able to hear. Her arms were first crossed over her chest, then smoothing her skirt and pushing a curl behind her ear as Josef followed every movement with his eyes.

The smile came to his lips unbidden. "Okay, Beth. Why have you invited me here tonight? If you just wanted to talk you could have done that over that new-fangled little device you used to call me earlier. And why are you so nervous? Is it little, old, harmless me?"

"I'm not nervous," Josef raised an eyebrow at her and she backed down from her denial, finally realizing that he could tell. She finally sat down on the opposite side of the sofa as he waited. "I, um, wanted to ask you about, ah, the whole human/vampire sex thing."

_This was going to be very amusing. _ Josef laughed slightly, amazed it took her this long to ask him for advice on this topic. "Mick hasn't told you?"

"He just avoids the subject, like it's somehow unpleasant for him or by talking about it some great hurdle would be removed between us and he's not ready and I honestly don't know if he'll ever be but I need some answers." She looked relieved that she was able to get all of that out in one sentence without the world ending.

Josef sat back and propped his feet up on her coffee table, choosing to ignore her look of outrage at how he was making himself at home. "I'm surprised you haven't asked me before now. I just figured the two of you were ah, working up to the hot, sweaty sex," he said as he raised his eyebrows suggestively as he snapped his human teeth once in her direction.

The effect was not lost on Beth at that moment, and if it were possible, she looked even more nervous than when he had first arrived. "No, we haven't been working up to anything as far as I can tell, and I'm getting damn frustrated about it. I love him, but if this is all there is going to be physically I need to know. He just tells me it's dangerous and I could get hurt, blah, blah, blah, and I get it. But please, Josef, I'm serious about this. Before my mind comes up with any other bizarre possibilities about the types of injuries, I need the actual truth from someone I can trust." There was the fired-up Beth-on-a-mission that he had come to appreciate so much.

Although it was impossible for vampires to get tension headaches, Josef rubbed his right temple and decided how to deal with this discussion without Beth ending up dumping Mick's ass right there and then. His memories from his days as a human were rather vague, but he did remember asking his sire about his same subject. Unfortunately for Beth, he can't just give her the same answer he was given, because that was the night he was turned in the heat of passion.

"Josef?" He snapped out of his trip down memory lane and wondered how long he'd been gone.

"Sorry. Fine. What do you want to know, Beth?" He was doing his best to look innocent.

He was honestly surprised when she didn't pull out her notebook and pen since she had that reporter look to her now. "What's the dangerous part? Are we talking a broken pelvis, too much blood loss, what specifically?"

Resigning himself to the inevitable, he said, "you're correct on both of the above, in addition to the potential for a variety of internal injuries depending on the relative force involved, bleeding internally and from bite wounds, scars from said wounds, other broken bones, concussions. But the one that you'd probably have to worry about most with Mick is the blood loss from a bite or bites, and vampires do bite down during sex, usually close to or at orgasm. It's often necessary for the orgasm in the first place, but it makes it immensely more pleasurable for the vamp, and usually the human if they are so inclined. I have to find myself wondering if you're the kind of woman that would enjoy the biting, given the right circumstances of course. If not, you might want to move on now and save both of you the risk."

Looking both fascinated and embarrassed at his statement, Beth chose to examine the details of the fabric she was sitting on rather than look at him. The blood rushing to her cheeks coupled with the faint but unmistakable scent of her arousal. Even though he didn't have to, he made a show of scenting the air before continuing.

"So you do want that… good," he smiled knowingly as he spoke, enjoying the effect the discussion was having on her while Beth looked at him in horror, like he could somehow read her mind and he knew her darkest desires. She shut her eyes tight and waited as if somehow she'd wake up any minute out of the nightmare she'd started.

Josef was a little surprised at her embarrassment as this whole discussion was her idea in the first place. "Come on, Beth. You're an adult, and you wanted to talk about this. I'm a vampire, remember? I've seen and done just about everything a man can do with a woman, human or vampire, and probably more than once throughout the centuries. It's not like this is new ground for me, and I honestly don't think you're an innocent virgin. I know that you had to have thought about the biting during sex before you asked me about it. Honestly, I think it will heighten the experience for you as well as Mick, assuming you can get him to quit before there's a problem. Speaking of which, you two had better do this right, because I'm really not interested in picking up the pieces of Mick if he ends up hurting you."

The continued discussion wasn't helping her be any less embarrassed, but she was decidedly interested. "How do I do that? Get him to stop before he takes too much?"

"You'll have to tell him, and he'll have to be mostly full with fresh blood from another human to help his control. The latter is going to be the biggest hurdle, other than maybe getting him to accept that he's going to drink from you during sex. Has he fed from you for pleasure, without the sex?" Beth looked down again as Josef asked. "I mean, when he wasn't dying and when there were no other emergencies?"

"Never," Beth almost whispered her answer. She was both disappointed and embarrassed, but this time not at the sexual content of the discussion. "I asked, I tried to get him to, you know, feed, but he said he didn't want to, not from me." Looking down into her lap, Beth was fidgeting with her nails absentmindedly as she took a deep breath. "Is there something wrong with me, Josef? Could my blood just taste bad and that's why he doesn't want to drink from me? Is he just using the whole danger thing to cover the fact that my blood isn't good enough?"

Tears were pooling in the corners of her eyes when she finally looked up at him and he wanted to stake Mick at that moment for making her feel this way. Mick's desire to protect the woman he loves from harm is one thing, but he was hurting her in an entirely different way by not doing what comes naturally to vampires who are in love with humans. Thankfully, Beth didn't resist when Josef moved over and wrapped his arms around her, letting her head rest on his shoulder as she cried.

"Of course not, Beth. All blood tastes good to a vamp. We may have a preference for one type or gender over another, but blood is always delicious, satisfying, exciting, and always better when it comes straight from a living human. I'm sure there's nothing wrong with your blood, baby. The problem is Mick, not you." He rubbed her back gently with his fingertips, trying to keep his mind focused away from the sound of her blood flowing just under the skin of her neck, which was so close to his mouth.

In between small sobs, Beth asked Josef, "but I have a rare blood type, maybe mine isn't as good as the others. Maybe after the desert he just decided he doesn't want my blood again, and that's why he won't... There has to be something wrong with me."

Josef continued to hold her, reveling in the feel of her supple body against his chest while the lure of her trust found him willing to do anything to show her what she feared wasn't true, now or ever. His eyes were drawn to the pulse in her neck again and he felt his fangs lengthen as he fought to keep his control. Talking about her blood, the drinking of her blood, all surrounding the discussion of sex with her was starting to become overwhelming, and hell, he'd never been one for denying himself the pleasures of the flesh, especially the willing flesh.

Easing Beth gently away from him, he found he wanted to say something more to reassure her, but he just couldn't keep holding her so close without actually biting her. When she looked up at him she was anything but worried at the sight of his descended fangs and pale eyes; her eyes pleaded with him in ways the vampire in him understood, but the man in him remembered his obligations to Mick. _Biting his girlfriend and feeding from her was probably not what Mick had in mind when he asked me to take care of her._

"Beth, you can cry on my shoulder as long as we don't talk about your blood and sex and… I…maybe I should go catch a bite to eat, but if you like I can come back in an hour or so." Josef started to stand but Beth's hands pulled him back down.

"Please stay. I need to know if it's me, my blood, that's stopping Mick… Please. I don't know who else to go to, Josef. You're the only other vampire I trust." Her wrist was raised up in offering to him as she looked up at him with an expression that was both pleading and needy. The blood was flowing just below the surface and so close, so tempting. But her neck… the skin there was soft, yielding, the blood beneath it just waiting to be freed, and the smell of her skin so enticing.

Beth had not failed to notice Josef staring at the pulse in her neck, and she moved closer to him on the couch as she pulled her hair to the side, moving her head back and away to lay bare her neck for his bite. It could have been a dream, Josef decided, but he just couldn't turn down such a gift, even if it was offered in her desperation to hold onto Mick. Gathering her up in his arms while his eyes never left the pulsations of her blood just under that soft skin, Josef asked only once, "Beth, are you sure about this?"

She had barely gotten out her "yes" before Josef was planting small, delicate kisses up and down the side of her neck, barely grazing the skin with his sharp fangs. How easily she relaxed into his grasp surprised him, convincing him that she would give him more than just a taste of her blood tonight if he chose to press his advantage. Teasing her was making them both more desperate for the bite itself, and Josef didn't intend to make her wait very long even though he was desperately trying to be careful with her.

"Beth, don't struggle, okay? Just relax into it. I've got you," he said in one ragged breath against her skin, not even bothering to raise his head while trying to maintain his control for just another few seconds. His hand came up along her back and he ran his fingers through her silky hair, ready to hold her head in place against him, while the other pulled her entire body up against his. That position would leave no doubt just how attracted to her he was at that moment, but if he scared her with this now he wouldn't be doing himself or Mick any favors. She nestled herself closer into Josef's chest and put her hands around his waist, waiting.

Her complete surrender to him at that moment made him harder than he'd been in years, and he wanted nothing more than to drink his fill from her before tearing away her clothes and taking her body right there, burying himself fully inside her heat. He pulled back slightly and heard Beth whimper, and that small noise sending him over the edge, making him growl low in his throat with a sound that would never be human. In half a second his teeth had pierced her skin and her sweet, hot blood was welling up into his mouth. As he swallowed, he felt as well as heard her moan, he tasted her pleasure in the blood, her desire for him, for the bite, for release. She held her breath at the beginning, but now was starting to take short quick breaths with long whimpering moans as she exhaled. To answer that need, Josef moved his head slightly back and forth, just enough for Beth to feel his teeth move inside her neck and trigger a second round of endorphins for both of them. Her body shook with the pleasure.

Josef knew he needed to stop, and soon. His hunger for blood had been satisfied, even if his appetite for her body had not, and he knew he'd already overstepped the boundary of what his friend would have allowed just by biting her in the first place. Gently raising his mouth from her neck, he continued to hold her still while he licked the few trickles of blood that came from his bite marks as they sealed. The last few drops of her rich, warm essence were all the more delicious because he doubted he'd ever get a chance for another taste of her. _There is absolutely nothing wrong with her blood, and everything that's right about it. _Fangs retracted and his eyes returned to their human appearance, and as he laid Beth back across his lap, her head resting on the back of the sofa, he couldn't help but feel a sense of pride. The expression on her face was one of total bliss, contentment, satiety, as if she'd just had a mind-blowing orgasm, which she had whether she knew it or not, and he was the one who had given her such pleasure. _Not Mick, me_.

While he'd seen a similar look on the face of other human women before, it was somehow different on Beth. As he watched her rest and recover from the new experience, he worked on his own control, resisting the urge to claim more than just her blood for himself while all the time knowing that she wouldn't make a move to stop him. But not tonight. Not after he fed from her like that. Whether he was willing to admit it to himself or not, he wanted Beth to come to his bed clear-headed and without regrets. She'd have regrets if he took advantage of her now, and for some unknown reason, that actually mattered to him.

Josef had to admit that Mick was a very lucky man to have such a beautiful, intelligent, and responsive woman as his own, just as he was also an idiot to deny her the physical relationship that they'd both enjoy. That boy was going to need a serious talking-to about his immaturity on this subject, assuming that Josef could avoid Mick's wrath for showing Beth what she was missing.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

This story takes place after Mick's foray into the realm of humanity, but Maureen was not killed and Beth is still working for Buzzwire. I love constructive criticism and reviews! Please keep them coming. - Laurelin

--

Vampires really do have more fun, Josef thought to himself as he sat there with Beth, completely still as only a vampire can be. Her steady heartbeat and even breathing reassured him that he had not taken too much blood from her, but that he had instead sent her into a blissful sleep. They needed to talk about what had happened between them tonight, but she looked so peaceful there in his arms that he couldn't bring himself to disturb her slumber. At that moment, Josef became aware of just how beautiful Beth was, not just in the pleasingly proportioned face and healthy physique way that he had noticed the first time he met her. Seeing and feeling her like this made him feel like he caught a glimpse of her soul, if there even was such a thing, or maybe the person she was inside. She reminded him so much of Sara, laying there content in his embrace having just trusted him enough to willingly give in to his hunger, relying on him to keep her safe. He tried to reconcile the conflicting feelings in that instant of mourning for Sara and wanting Beth, both envying Mick and hating him for hurting her like he was doing every minute they were together. No matter what had transpired this evening, Beth was not his. She was in love with Mick. Even though he had a wing of his house full of beautiful young women with gourmet blood who were only too happy to join him in his bed, Josef couldn't help but feel very alone at that moment. He wanted what he couldn't really have… the woman who had just shared her blood with him after crying on his shoulder over the vampire she did love, and the woman who couldn't cry at all in New York. Emotionally this was not a place that Josef liked to be.

Deciding it was time for him to go before he was forced to spend any more time with introspection, he carefully picked Beth up and headed for her bedroom. Once the sheets were pulled down, he set her down carefully with her head on the soft pillow. Seeing her there like that gave Josef a momentary flash of her naked on those same sheets, offering herself to him as he stood by the side of the bed, and of him pinning her to the bed and ravishing her. Shaking his head as if trying to clear away the image, he gently removed Beth's shoes and pulled the blanket over her. After one last stroke of her cheek Josef steps back, intent on heading for the door but Beth's hand closes around his and stops him in mid step.

Josef doesn't turn around to look at her, he can't; he merely waits. "Josef, don't go, please."

He closed his eyes for a moment, gathering all of his control before turning around. With his cloak of sarcasm and presumed self-satisfaction mostly back in place, Josef looked at Beth as he replied, "yes, my little freshie?" It wasn't meant to wound as he had said it with affection, but he hoped it would help to solidify the distance between them that needed to be there if she was going to continue to be Mick's girlfriend. As much as he hated the thought, this had to end at him reassuring her that there was nothing wrong with her, only with Mick, and that somehow he would guide Mick into doing the right thing.

Beth looked confused. "What's a freshie?"

Josef smiled and rolled his eyes as he sat down on the floor next to her bed. Beth propped herself up on one elbow, but Josef wasn't convinced her motor skills had completely returned as she wobbled for a second. "Mick hasn't told you? Jesus, he really is trying to keep you out of our world in spite of his absolute obsession with you. A freshie is a willing blood donor, much sought after and highly appreciated by vamps of any sophistication." He gave her his cocky smile and in spite of himself kissed the back of her hand with a very chivalrous nod and wave of the other hand. It took him several seconds longer than it should have to relinquish the touch of her skin, though he forced himself to remember why he must.

Beth seemed just as distracted by that small contact, but when Josef finally let go she searched his face for an answer to the question she had asked before she offered her neck to him. The vulnerability and loneliness she saw written into his timeless features surprised her more than her desire for him at that moment.

"What is it, Josef? What's wrong?" That small voice of panic in the back of her mind roared back to life. It was her blood that was stopping Mick.

The increase in her heart rate wasn't lost on Josef as he remembered he'd never verbally reinforced what their bodies had told both of them with regard to Beth's blood. Disgusted with himself for the lapse of his usual façade, Josef snapped it back into place and gave Beth the most reassuring, carefree smile he could muster.

"Absolutely nothing, Beth, your blood is exquisite, delicious in a way that is not open to personal preferences where vampires are concerned. Mick may not say it, but he had to have enjoyed the taste of your blood more than he'd ever admit. Any vamp would consider your blood a rare gift, but I'm surprised Mick never told me you had such an unusual blood type. Then again, he probably figured if he did I'd have been after you sooner." _Damn. Did I really just say that out loud? That I was after her?_ Trying to cover his mistake he quickly added, "even though Mick is completely in love with you, obsessed really, he erroneously believes you'd be better off with a human. The only reason I can think of that Mick wouldn't want to drink from you, oh, every minute you're together is that he might become hopelessly addicted to your sweet blood. So don't worry." Josef stood up again to go, trying to reconcile himself to the trip home to his freezer, alone.

"Are you, Josef?" she asked quietly, knowing he could hear her easily.

"Am I what?" he quipped, raising his right eyebrow and trying to look amused in spite of what was going on in his heart.

"Addicted to my blood?" Beth wasn't sure what she wanted the answer to be.

"But of course I am. No vampire could resist you, Miss Turner," he replied, knowing he had to get to the door of her apartment before she did or said anything else that might make him want to stay. Vampire speed had its benefits. Let the effect of his sudden disappearance add to the mystique of the visit, but he couldn't stay a minute longer without joining her in the bed and showing her just how irresistible she was.

--

Having slept better than she had in weeks, even if it was in her clothes, Beth felt refreshed and ready for another day covering whatever celebrity had passed out in their own vomit overnight. She had promised Mick to stay away from the murders and kidnappings while he was away, saying something about how Josef wasn't a PI and didn't really care about what humans did to each other as long as it didn't hurt his business or involve vamps. Mick had promised to make it worth her while if she complied with his request to stay away from the dangerous stuff, and especially after last night Beth had every intention of holding him to it.

The two neat fang marks on the side of her neck were smaller than she thought they'd be as she examined them in the mirror. A tingle went through her body as she remembered the feel of Josef's strong arms encircling her, his soft kisses, the barest sharp pain when his fangs pierced her skin, and the overwhelming pleasure that immediately followed. If those sensations could be combined with great sex, there was no way she was going to let Mick get away with his excuses any longer. But what if the pleasure was something only Josef could do? Beth remembered feeling pain when Mick bit her that day in the desert, but maybe that was only because he was on the verge of dying, wasn't it? She found herself wondering if the situation were more controlled and Mick wasn't as hungry if he could make her feel the way Josef had, and what it would mean if he couldn't.

Last night was illuminating to say the least, but now Beth found herself with more unanswered questions. While relieved to know that her blood wasn't worse than the morgue blood that Mick regularly drank, there was still the matter of her safety during sex. Even if Mick's bite couldn't compare to Josef's, Beth still wanted to be with him, and badly at that, but she was forced to agree with Mick that she'd also like to be able to sleep with him more than once. That wouldn't be happening if she died during the best part. This meant she was going to have to go back to Josef to get some answers.

Beth waited until late afternoon to call, hoping that Josef wasn't sleeping. She made a mental note to consult Miss Manners for Vampires about when was the best time to call a vamp out of their freezer. Maybe it was in the same section as "catching a bite to eat", and "how to ask a vampire's age without being rude".

_Her again. _Josef sat quietly and studied his cell phone, debating whether to answer it or just let her go. _Damn. I promised Mick. Okay, he threatened to drive a stake through my heart if I didn't help Beth when she called, but this was getting ridiculous._ Just before his voicemail answered Josef picked up the phone. Time to keep up the distance.

"Neck Biters Anonymous, Josef speaking."

"Very funny, Josef," Beth replied.

"I thought so," he said with his usual air of self-satisfaction. Josef was nothing if not patient from his four hundred years of experience, but Beth hesitated on the other end of the line. Time to press the advantage with her hesitancy and stop her before she actually got out whatever it was that she was trying to get the courage to say. "What is it, Blondie? I'm a little busy here." Truth was he was sitting at his desk in the office populated only by stock quoting computer monitors, trying desperately to focus on making money for the last four hours instead of Beth. Josef suddenly had a lot more sympathy for Mick; he knew he had to stop any possibility of more intimacies with Beth but was finding it very difficult actually accomplish. Mick was resisting for stupid reasons, but Josef was at least trying not to mess it up for them.

"Wow, someone got up on the wrong side of the freezer today. What time do you get up anyway?" Beth asked, doing her best to sound light-hearted.

"Well, let's see. Today I got up two nights ago. I'm sure the dollar's weakness and its resulting negative impact on the Asian markets has you just as sleepless."

"Actually I slept better than I have in years," she said quietly.

The awkward silence that stretched between them convinced Josef that she wasn't going to just let this drop. It was so much easier when both parties could just pretend that nothing happened.

"So what's new in the world of trashy gossip today? Anyone go into rehab, violate their parole, or do something stupid while drunk?"

"Well, Maureen was going to let me go for the day after Brittany's court hearing, but as I don't have anything to do this evening, or anywhere I need to be, I thought I might work late and go check out that murder scene from East L.A. I heard that it was gang-related." The exaggerated excitement in her voice was purely for Josef's benefit.

Josef laughed in spite of himself. This girl was clever. Mick obviously hadn't figured out just how clever yet or he would have just given in already. There was no way for either of them to win against this woman. "Very funny. Now I know you promised Mick that you were only going to cover the fluff pieces while he was away, so don't even think about it."

"Hey Maureen!" Josef heard Beth's editor in the background. "Get me that camera crew for the East L.A. murder. I'll be ready to go in ten." She waited for Josef's response, wishing she could see the look on his face. "It was nice talking to you, Josef, but I really need to get going so I can alleviate my boredom by taking excessive risks."

"Fine, Beth, I give up. You win." Losing might be more fun that he ever thought. "I"ll pick you up at 6:30. Wear something… casual… preferably in blue." He hung up before Beth could even answer, knowing full well that she wouldn't be anywhere near a crime scene tonight.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Josef knocked on the door to Beth's apartment and waited. One thing hadn't changed at all over the centuries, women were rarely ready to leave on time because they were always finishing up their look. Or in some cases, like this one, the look hadn't even reached the half-way mark.

Beth was standing in her doorway clad in nothing but a dark red silk robe, _blood red to be exact,_ and although it was fairly modest in its coverage, Josef knew she couldn't be wearing much under it. Experience had taught him that when women opened the door in their dressing gowns, displaying his fresh bite mark on their necks, it usually ended in both of them forgetting about the planned outing in favor of a quick seduction and extended evening of carnal pleasures. Not that there was anything wrong with that in general, but this was the love of his best friend's life. Josef made a mental note to find a priest tomorrow afternoon and find out what was going on… he'd stopped believing in God a long time ago, but this descent into purgatory was beginning to convince him that there was in fact a God and he had a very wicked sense of humor.

Beth looked good enough to eat, in more ways that one. Her hair was loose about her face and her makeup was subtle but flattering, and her scent was divine. She smelled faintly like the lilac he remembered from his human childhood, like the bushes that once grew outside of his window. Most human perfumes and soaps were overpowering in their fragrance to vampires, but this was subtle and it enhanced her personal scent in a way that made Josef want to bury his face in her hair and sink his teeth into the unblemished side of her neck. _Couldn't she have picked a different color for the robe?_

He recovered from his initial shock well, and desperately hoped that Beth hadn't noticed just how much her appearance had affected him. "Well, well," Josef said looking her up and down. "For me? I'm flattered, really. But since you invited yourself along on my evening's activities, I'd appreciate it if you kept to my timetable, and we're going out. Unless you intend to be seen in public like that, run along and get dressed, in blue." He leaned up against the side of the doorway and looked at his watch, smiling to himself. They had plenty of time.

Beth just rolled her eyes at him and clenched her fists in frustration. "I'm ready to go except for the blue part. You did not specify the shade, or the function. Is this a navy blue housewarming party, a light blue baby shower, are we going electric blue club hopping, or what? Since you're so picky about the color, I thought it only fitting that you pick the shade." Beth realized that she had no idea what Josef did for fun other than entertain himself with his "freshies", torment Mick, and make money. She turned away and walked back towards the bathroom as she continued. "The blue pieces of clothing I own are out on the sofa. Bring them to me when you figure it out."

_Well, well, indeed._ Most of the women that he was used to dealing with would never have dreamed of spinning the situation so that somehow it was his fault that they weren't ready on time. It really was refreshing. Fortunately, Josef had no trouble in picking out clothing for women. He regularly dressed his freshies for his social functions, why should tonight be any different? _Because it's Beth, and she's not my freshie, at least I think she isn't._

Josef took his time looking over her clothes, because it gave him a little more insight into her personality and it made her wait, which he enjoyed. New and worn looking jeans, deep blue cashmere V-necked sweater, navy blue dress slacks, medium blue polo shirt, they were all very normal looking and ranged from weekend-wear to office-wear. But the sexy little blue dress that looked like it would be skin tight was almost too much to pass up, as his mind kept trying to imagine what Beth would look like in that dress and more importantly, what she'd look like as he peeled it off of her creamy skin. Shaking off the thought, Josef grabbed a pair of jeans and headed off to Beth's closet to look for something else… which he quickly found. A plain white T-shirt was all she needed with the jeans, which were a deep indigo and would be sufficient for the blue.

Josef headed for the bathroom and knocked, but he just couldn't help but peek through the slight opening of the door at Beth putting finishing touches on her makeup. Women who were trying to look even more beautiful as they primped had always been alluring to Josef. The way they touched themselves and admired their bodies in the mirror was somehow so personal and intimate to watch. Sadly, Beth didn't continue for long, just held out her hand for the clothes.

"These will be fine for now, we'll take care of the rest when we get there," he said before returning to the living room, attempting to head off her obvious questioning on why the shirt wasn't white.

The faint rustling of clothes behind the now-closed door went on while Beth asked, "where are we going tonight, anyway?"

"Does it matter? You convinced me to take you there without even asking what my plans are, so why should I tell you now?"

Beth stuck her head out of the bathroom door and glared at him, clearly unhappy with her loss of control of the situation. "This isn't some vampire potluck is it? Everyone bring their freshies and share?"

"No, that's next week. Are you ready yet?" he asked impatiently.

When she stepped out of the bathroom, Josef found himself quite pleased with the result. The effect was casual and complementary to his own dark jeans, white shirt, and pinstriped dark blue sportjacket. "Yes, I'm ready. But are you going like that? It's a little dressed down for you, isn't it? I've never seen you out of your tailored Italian suits." She grabbed her shirt and headed for the door.

"Not all of my suits are from Italy. Some are made in New York by Italians. And I do appreciate the fashion advice, really. Especially since you have no idea where we're going," he reminded her. _Toying with the humans really is a great hobby. I'm glad I thought of it._

Women's liberation was fine and all, but Josef still believed that men should open doors for women. It was one of the few times you could stare at their ass without getting into trouble, and in today's world it kept them off balance, which was to his liking. He hated the thought of becoming predictable. So not only did he hold her apartment door and the door to her building for her, when he led her to his blue Ferrari (yes, he has a blue one and a red one), he also opened the passenger door for her and took her hand while she sat down. Josef loved the impressed look on every woman's face when they saw his cars, it just never got old.

Beth still looked a little stunned when Josef slid into the driver's seat. "Ever ridden in a Ferrari before?" he asked Beth as the engine roared to life.

"No. First time." She looked nervous.

"Really? So a week of firsts for you, then. But no need to be nervous, I'm well aware that Mick will drive a stake through my heart if I let anything happen to his true love." The subtext was there, and he hoped that Beth understood it, because every minute he spent with her was making it more difficult for him to hold back. He knew that she wouldn't resist his advances if he chose to make them, especially not after last night, and that taste of her blood, her compliant body in his arms, hearing her soft moans of pleasure, only made Josef want her more. Any questions she might ask him tonight better only require verbal answers in the semi-public locale where they were headed.

The nervousness Beth was projecting changed to complete confusion when Josef handed over an ID card to the parking lot attendant. Granted, he'd deliberately waited until they got to the gate to lean over and brush his arm against her leg when retrieving said card from the glove compartment. "Josef, um… we're at Dodger Stadium."

As they pulled into a reserved parking place right next to a security-guard monitored elevator, Josef smiled at Beth for a moment then shut off the engine. "Of course we are, Miss Turner. Where else would you go to watch the greatest team in Major League Baseball play in person tonight?" Josef reached into the back seat and pulled a shopping bag into the front. From inside, he pulled out a jersey for Beth with "Turner" and "01" on the back that he handed to her. "We're here, so you might as well finish getting dressed."

"Thanks, Josef. How did you get something like this at the last minute?" Beth asked as she put on the Dodgers jersey, which fit perfectly.

"Who said it was last minute?" he replied feeling rather smug. When Beth just looked at him like she wasn't buying the story, he continued, "don't worry, Blondie. Mick has a similar one at his place, and he asked me to have one made for you for one of your future 'dates' as he called it."

Blushing slightly at the thought, Beth finished up her buttons but Josef did not fail to notice her reaction to the mention of Mick planning for a romantic evening, even if it was at the ballpark. He came around to the passenger side and took her hand to help her out of the car. The touch of her skin was too much, he could hear her heartbeat so clearly and feel her blood in his veins. So he tucked her arm around his elbow before she could resist and headed for the security guard.

"You go to baseball games? It's such a… a… normal thing to do," Beth said as they approached.

"Well, it's a way to fill the time, darling. The markets are closed now," he leaned closer to her ear and lowered his voice, "and there's only so much playing with my food that I can do in one night." Beth's small shudder at the thought was reward enough, for now.

They'd reached the elevator by that point. "Good evening, Mr. Kostan. Very nice to see you again. Lovely night for a game." The man inserted a key into the elevator control panel and pressed the 'up' button. Beth noted that Josef hadn't had to show his ID to the security guard and wondered just how often he came here. "Will you be heading up to your box straight away?"

"Yes, Mitchell, I think I will," Josef replied. The elevator doors slid open with a soft hiss as Josef subtlety pressed some cash into the man's hand as they passed. There was only one floor other than the parking garage to choose from, and it opened a moment later onto a private level where Josef again showed his ID. Strangely, no one asked to see their tickets, even when they got to the "Owner's Box", and the few employees there were all able to address Josef by name.

Beth knew that Josef was wealthy and well-connected, but damn, this definitely was the best of the best. Their box was behind home plate, just above the lowest level of seating, and the view was fabulous. The indoor section was tastefully decorated in rich, dark wood with deep leather chairs and a full bar, run tonight by a cute brunette with a badge that said "Sasha". She greeted them professionally and asked if she could get anything for either one of them.

Josef turned to Beth, who had been too overwhelmed to say much since they got out of the car, and he asked, "would you like anything to drink, Miss Turner? Sasha is also able to send someone for any of the usual ballpark fare, or I could have the Richard, our executive chef, prepare something a little fancier for you if you'd like." Josef was in his element now, showing off his power to those around him and loving every minute of it.

Taking everything in, Beth just nodded. "I'll have a Coke and a hot dog, if you don't mind, can't go to the ballgame and not have that."

Sasha smiled and turned her attention to Josef. "May I offer you a drink, Sir?" The woman looked hesitantly at Beth.

"It's alright, Sasha." Josef brushed his fingertips along the side of Beth's neck, just enough to push the hair back and expose the healing bite marks. Beth fumed and tried to pull back away from Josef, but his arm around hers was like steel and she decided she wasn't actually mad enough to cause a scene. And if she stormed out now she wasn't going to be getting any answers to her questions. "Miss Turner already knows about me. She happens to be a friend of Mr. St. John."

There was clear recognition of the Mick's name that immediately made Beth suspicious. "Welcome, Miss Turner. Please do not hesitate to ask should you require anything this evening." Her attention back to Josef, she continued, "Mr. Kostan, will there be any more guests joining you this evening?"

"No, it's just the two of us tonight," Josef replied, and Beth did her best to hide her surprise. There clearly should have been owners in the box, unless…

"Josef, do you really…?" She couldn't bring herself to actually say the words because the thought of it was way too strange.

"Yes, Miss Turner. I do own the Dodgers if that's what you are stumbling over. I liked them so much when they were in Brooklyn I brought them with me when I moved to L.A. in '58."

Beth just stood there and couldn't manage to find a word to say in return. Josef was not just wealthy, but ridiculously wealthy.

Sensing the void in their conversation, Sasha took the opportunity to finish her duties. "Very well, Mr. Kostan. we have fresh AB negative in the decanter, no more than an hour old, or if you prefer, B negative on tap." Her wrist was offered to Josef, palm side up, her face professional but it was clear to Beth that she enjoyed her work.

Leaning down to plant a small chaste kiss over the offered vein, Josef met Beth's eyes and gauged her reaction. There was an anticipation there, he decided, hearing both of the women's pulses increase at that simple touch. Beth found herself clearly unable to look away, but Josef wanted to hear it in her voice that she understood because Mick was going to have to start feeding from not only Beth, but other living humans if there was any chance of the two of them "sealing the deal". If Beth couldn't stand the heat, she needed to get out of the kitchen.

There had been ample opportunity for Beth to voice her dislike, turn away in disgust, or in some way attempt to alter the inevitable. Josef held Sasha's wrist delicately in both hands, but pulled his lips away for a moment.

"Which do you think I should have, Miss Turner?" His eyes faded to pale blue and his fangs descended as he waited for her answer.

She took a couple of short breaths before answering, but in a voice barely above a whisper she said, "I think you should accept the offer of her blood, Josef." The smell of arousal from both women, combined with the closeness of Sasha's delicious blood waiting for him just beneath the skin was more than the vampire in him could resist. In a flash he struck at Sasha's wrist, drawing a small gasp from Beth as well, and he swallowed the thick, warm blood as he watched Beth's reaction. Her pupils had dilated and there was no mistaking that not only was she comfortable with the concept of a vamp feeding in her presence, she was wishing she was the main course. _Good, very good._

After taking just enough to keep his hunger at bay, he withdrew his fangs but made no attempt to force his face back into its human appearance. He licked the wounds of the last trickles of blood and still he looked at Beth, who unflinchingly met his gaze. Josef dropped Sasha's arm and walked towards Beth like he was stalking prey, waiting for an opportunity to move in for the kill. He was vaguely aware of the door to the suite opening and quickly closing as Sasha left, but he couldn't take his eyes off of Beth. _Why doesn't she run?_ He wanted to chase her down, feel her struggle in his grasp as he kissed her, buried himself inside of her while she screamed his name.

At that moment, Josef no longer cared that she wasn't his. He wanted Beth for himself. Tonight. Now. Before he knew what he was doing, he had her pressed back against the wall with his mouth on hers, the faint coppery taste of Sasha's blood spilling onto her lips as he ran his tongue along them. Beth's arms were on his now, moving upwards to try to keep him from pulling away, but Josef's vampire wanted none of that. He was in control now, not her, so he grabbed her wrists in his hands and pushed them against the wall to either side of her head. Surprisingly, there was no struggle. She gave in to his strength and never stopped returning Josef's kiss while the smell of her desire overwhelmed him.

With an inhuman growl, he moved down to her neck and found it offered up freely to him. "Please, Josef, do it," she begged him, and he ran his tongue up her neck, tasting the saltiness of her skin, feeling the blood just beneath it. Just as he had decided for certain that he was going to overstep his bounds again and drink from this beautiful, eager woman, Josef's cell phone rang. He wasn't sure what the noise was right away, but by the third ring he knew what, and who, it was. That particular ringtone was Mick. The person that he was supposed to be saving Beth for.

He pulled himself back from her neck, his face returning to human, and he did his best not to look at the flushed and breathless woman still held in his grasp. Finally, he released Beth's wrists and stepped back several paces, flipping open his cell and barking into it, "This had better be good, Mick," not bothering to hide the annoyance in his voice.

Beth couldn't hear what Mick was saying anyway, so she took the opportunity to head to the private bathroom in their box to get her act together. Josef saw her close the door and mentally kicked himself. _What in the hell am I doing?_ _That's Beth for God's sake, Mick's Beth. _

"I was just calling to check in with you and…"

"Look, Mick, Beth's fine, okay? But you'd better get your ass back in town ASAP, because you and Beth need to sit down and have a little conversation about how and when you are going to get serious with this woman and take her to bed."

"But…" Mick tried to interrupt but was quickly cut off.

"I'll buy you the goddamned bed and even have it delivered, but Mick, she's got a lot of questions, and she's decided that while you aren't here it's the perfect time to get the answers from me. Explaining to her about feeding during sex is YOUR job, not mine, comprende?"

"Damn," Mick tried to process what Josef was saying. "I didn't think she'd, I mean…"

"Right, I get it. You didn't think. She's getting a serious inferiority complex from you, Mick, because she thinks that either you aren't attracted to her, there's something wrong with her blood, or you don't love her. You have told her that you love her, right?"

"I mean, I was going to, but then she'd… Oh hell. I've really screwed this up." Mick sounded even more depressed than usual.

"Damn right you have. Now find someone else to take care of your little human celebrity and get back here. I'll charter a plane for you, be at the airport in two hours before Beth finds someone else to explain this stuff, or worse yet for you, demonstrate." Josef closed his phone and ended the call because he was tired of Mick's excuses. _Either take her to bed and show her how beautiful she is, or get the hell out of the way so I can._

A quick call to his secretary ensured Mick would be on the plane and back within hours. Dreading the next conversation even more, Josef knocks softly on the door to the bathroom. "Beth, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I think so. I'm sorry Josef, I really am," she said in between sobs.

"It's okay, Beth. Come on out and we'll talk. Just talk, okay?"

Beth opened the door, but instead of the weeping woman Josef expected to walk out, she was laughing so hard she could barely stand up straight.

Folding his arms over his chest and secretly hoping she would fall over, Josef stood back and waited for her to be able to breathe in enough air to do the talking he had mentioned. "You going to tell me what is so funny? You seemed to have quite different emotions going on a mere three minutes ago."

"Yeah, but that was before… before…." And she doubled over in another fit of laughter.

Disgusted, Josef headed for the door to the hallway and called Sasha back in. The hot dog had been retrieved, and Sasha made herself busy pouring Beth a coke. She left both sitting on the counter while she asked Josef if he'd like the AB negative now.

"Yeah, and make it a tall one." Sasha complied and handed the glass over, not in the least bit uncomfortable with the experience.

Josef downed half the glass before Beth stopped laughing and retrieved her food. "Finished now?" he asked. Josef Kostan was definitely not used to being laughed at and certainly not to his face.

"Yeah, I think I'm through for now." She headed for the glass door to the outside seating area and sat down in the middle to watch the game.

Finishing his blood and feeling quite a bit calmer because of it, he headed out to join her.

She looked up at him and gave him a very self-satisfied smile that reminded Josef of his own most of the time. "I spooked you. Josef Kostan, four hundred year old vampire with enough money to buy anything and everything he wants, and I spooked you. Didn't I, admit it."

Shaking his head, Josef was forced to agree with her. "Yes, Miss Turner, you spooked me. And you're going to get me staked if we keep this up. Your boyfriend is not so much the forgiving type."

"And stop calling me 'Miss Turner'. I'm not your grade school teacher and I think we've been a little too up close and personal for the titles, don't you agree?" Beth had a mischievous smile that reached her eyes.

"Fine, Beth it is then." He enjoyed watching her eat, though maybe not as much as she had enjoyed watching him with Sasha earlier. "Since I have admitted my obvious inferiority, can we reach a truce?"

"Depends on the terms, but I'm listening."

"That can't happen again, Beth. Not as long as you are in love with Mick. I'll answer your questions, okay, but no more demonstrations. He's my friend, and even if he hasn't told you, he's madly in love with you, and he wouldn't take my personal instruction very well. I'll talk to him about the bite on your neck when he gets back, but this can't go any further."

Beth finished her hot dog and set the wrapper aside before looking at Josef. "I, um, was thinking about that. You know as well as I do that Mick will never trust himself in bed with me. He told me he hasn't slept with a human since he became a vampire, and really, Josef, he's terrified of hurting me. I thought maybe, if you were there, that um… God, I can't believe I'm asking this… that you could keep him from doing any ah… permanent damage."

"I can't referee from the sidelines Beth. I want you too much for that. Besides, I've always been a man of action, and watching has never been my thing."

"I wasn't asking to you referee, Josef. I was asking you to join us, and well, ah… both make love to me…all of us in the same bed. You could both make sure nothing terrible happened and we could all maybe relax more."

Josef sat back in his seat and watched Beth, considering her proposal and whether or not he could give her up once Mick had a little experience to convince him he wouldn't hurt her accidentally. Beth was looking out and trying to be interested in the game, afraid to meet his eyes, but Josef seriously doubted she was able to pay attention given how fast her heart was beating.

She finally looked back up at Josef, who still hadn't answered her. "I'm sorry, Josef. Forget it. I don't know what I was thinking. I never should have asked…" She was trying to backpedal as fast as she could.

"Beth, you wouldn't be my first ménage a trois, and not even the first time sharing a woman with Mick for that matter, so don't even bother to think I'm embarrassed by your offer. I'm quite flattered really. So yes, I accept, as long as you're the one to talk to Mick about it. As it is, with that bite mark on your neck, I'll be lucky to be alive long enough to enjoy you."

The relief on her face was obvious as she said, "well, then, I believe we have a deal."


	4. Chapter 4

The Dodgers game had been a welcome distraction for both of them, but Josef couldn't help but notice how Beth had gotten quiet all of a sudden once they'd reached the car. Not another word had been spoken about their deal since Josef had accepted, and he knew it was preying on her mind now.

"You aren't having second thoughts are you, Beth?" Josef asked quietly. He'd seen women get cold feet once the lust had settled.

"What? No, it's just that…" Beth just shook her head and made no further effort to continue.

"You're worried Mick will say no."

"Yeah," she said, sounding defeated before the battle had even begun.

"You're probably right. You know, you could always remind him of that time that Coraline tied him to the bed while she and I…"

Beth sat bolt upright in her seat. "Oh my God, too much information, Josef. Just stop there. Please." Beth begged him with a completely horrified look on her face, and Josef was thoroughly enjoying the effect that image had on her. When it came to this gorgeous human reporter, Josef just couldn't help but push his advantage; it was his nature, and Beth's too now that he thought of it.

"Oh, I see. You're more the vanilla type then?"

"Why… you…" She was flustered. Over him.

"Old fashioned missionary position then?"

"I am not having this conversation with you."

"Really? If all goes well in a few nights you will be doing this conversation with me," he said smugly, all the while wishing his jeans weren't so tight. "So sue me if I'm trying to get an idea of what you want ahead of time. Or were you planning on being the one doing the tying up?" Josef raised an eyebrow as if he hadn't considered that possibility before and was exploring it mentally.

"Just stop, Josef, please."

He laughed quietly for a few seconds, but when Beth didn't join him he changed his tone. "In all seriousness Beth, if you're having second thoughts, it's ok. I won't tell Mick you even brought it up and I'll let you two go back to making eyes at each other in peace." The smirk crept back onto Josef's face unbidden. "Well, come to think of it, not really in peace, but I won't tell him about the ménage a trois if you don't want me to."

"I never should have brought it up. There's no way Mick is going to agree. He may not even want to sleep with me at all… or he'd have been feeding from me. That's what you said, right?" Josef watched as she dug herself deeper into the emotional hole with this one.

"Stop, Beth, please. Mick loves you, he's incredibly attracted to you and has been for years, and he's never said a word to me that would make me believe anything other than the fact that he's scared to death of hurting you. It would kill him for good." This was not appearing to make Beth feel any better, and they had pulled up outside of her building. "Once it became clear that you had similar feelings for Mick, I offered him several of my freshies who had expressed an attraction to him. Not just to feed from, but sort of a dress-rehearsal if you will, for the main event with you two. He seriously considered it, Beth, only because he wants you, but in the end he declined because he didn't want to be 'unfaithful' to you. For the last twenty years he's refused to drink fresh blood that isn't flowing out of someone that deserves their death at his hands."

There were tears in Beth's eyes when she looked up at him. "Josef, what happened twenty years ago that made him quit drinking fresh blood? I'm no expert, but you make it look and feel so natural I just don't understand."

Josef sighed and decided this conversation wasn't going to be quick. He got out and opened Beth's door for her, walking her slowly up to her apartment as he talked. "Because Mick isn't much into admitting to himself that he's no longer human. If he drinks blood from a glass, why is that so much different than any beverage a human consumes? He wants to trick himself into making it not so, but if he wants to be closer to you physically, he's going to have to deal with the elephant in the room."

"But what happened, Josef? Why twenty years ago? The way you said it made it seem like he was drinking from… freshies… before then." Beth unlocked her door and went to get a glass of water while Josef sat down on the couch.

"You mean, other than you?"

"Yes, other than me."

"Fine. But I want you to remember that you were the one who asked." He paused to let Beth reconsider, but when she just stared at him from curled up in the chair across from him, he went on. "After he thought Coraline was dead by his hand, he went into a really deep depression. As bad as the relationship was for both of them, Mick did love her, and he was having problems reconciling this with the knowledge that she deserved what she got. At one point he went on a binge with the blood. He killed a freshie. Drained her dry. Though thankfully, not one of mine. It happens to all vamps sooner or later, usually sooner, and it was I think a testament to how much Coraline loved him that she never let him kill while he was with her because she must have known what it would do to him. So since that time he won't drink from willing humans, only those he's going to kill. I don't know how many 'bad guys' he's drained since then but I think his entire sense of feeding from humans is intertwined with killing and violence and guilt. Not necessarily a good combination for sex with someone he loves."

It took Beth a while to absorb the implications of what Josef said. "This is bad," was all that she could manage. She sat hugging her knees, resting her head down on them.

"You think so? I've been trying to snap him out of it since I realized it wasn't just a little phase he was going through. Honestly, half the reason he may hate what he is so much is that he's missing out on the best part of being a vamp." Josef licked his lips at the thought of how much he enjoyed his own life, and decided to get up and pace for the rest of the conversation. It helped him think.

"Josef, can I ask you something else?" Beth was quietly getting more upset. This was not going the way Josef had thought it would.

"The last time I accidentally drained a freshie as two hundred years ago. I've had quite a bit longer than Mick to work on my… control. Does that answer your question?"

"Ah, good to know, but not what I was asking. I figured you weren't too worried about taking too much blood from me yourself or you wouldn't have agreed to, um,"

Josef stopped his pacing behind Beth's chair and leaned down to whisper in her ear, his breath brushing against her hair but he never got close enough to actually touch her. "…to take you to bed and make love to you for hours? Yeah, I'm not in a hurry to end up dead for good at Mick's hand. With a few hors d'oeurves I'll be quite able to savor the main course without any ill effects to you. And I'm hoping you'll be dessert too, if you aren't too exhausted from coming so much." Then he backed away before she could react and resumed his loop around Beth's living room, not bothering to look at her reaction. He could feel it in her blood.

She was having trouble looking at Josef now, because he knew she felt the pull between them. She hugged her knees tighter and just closed her eyes to ask her next question since the image conjured up in her mind by Josef's comments was trying to project itself onto her reality.

"What happens when Mick says no to the idea of the three of us. Is there a Plan B?"

"Of course there is, Beth. I always have a backup plan, but I think you underestimate my powers of persuasion once I set my mind to something. I honestly haven't been trying hard enough with Mick in recent years, but for you, I'll change that."

Letting out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding, Beth looked somewhat relieved. "Can he, I mean, is his bite, like yours? Or is that just you?"

"Ah, my dear, how tempting it is to tell you it is something only I can do for you. If you weren't in love with my best friend, I'd do just that." He was standing across from her, not close enough to touch. "Mick and most other vamps can bring pleasure with their bites when they want to. Mick will certainly want to, and I doubt he's forgotten how."

Beth looked up at him briefly, like she wanted to ask something else, but she just went back to looking at her knees. Josef studied her a moment before continuing, "No, you don't have to worry about giving birth to a half-vampire child, or any child out of this experience. Vamps can't carry any diseases other than vampirism. You will not become a vampire from exposure to certain non-blood bodily fluids. Other than the feeding and the biting and the need to be careful with your fragile but gorgeous body, sex is pretty much the same as between humans, if a bit more adventurous. I'll make sure Mick is well fed on fresh blood so he won't be likely to take too much from you. I will also not arrive in your bed without having fed well just before. Mick will confirm for me by demonstration that he remembers how to make his bite worth the price of admission before he feeds from you. Say you want us to stop and we will, I'll make sure of it. I enjoy women who enjoy sex, so if there's something you want more of, or anything you've ever been afraid to ask your human lovers for, just beg me and I might give it to you."

She was now staring at him in complete surprise, both for how he managed to anticipate most of her questions, but how he was also taking it farther than she would ever have asked. His comfort level with what they had agreed to do was far beyond her own. Beth couldn't even believe she'd had the nerve to ask him in the first place.

Josef continued after a short pause to let her process the answers to the questions she had wanted to ask him. "It's okay to ask me to bite you. I have every intention of doing so, and I do not want you to be embarrassed about your needs in that or any other regard. Mick may have a complex about being a vampire, but I do not." He walked closer to where she was sitting and rested his palm against the side of her cheek and gently turned her face up towards his. "You have my word I will keep you safe. And I'm not doing this for Mick. I'm coming to your bed because you asked me to." A brief soft kiss on her lips was all that she knew before Josef was suddenly no longer in her apartment.


	5. Chapter 5

As always, I don't own Moonlight or any of the characters. I wish I did.

Thanks again to everyone who has sent me such kind reviews. -Laurelin

--

Josef's limo was parked on the runway when Mick's plane landed. "This can't be good," Mick thought as he stepped down onto the tarmac. Josef had gotten out of his car to watch as his driver put Mick's bag in the trunk while making no move himself to help. He merely stared at Mick, as if appraising his inherent worth, Mick thought, and finding it lacking.

"Thanks for picking me up, Josef. You didn't have to do that," Mick said, trying to act as if everything was normal, but Josef wasn't bothering with the charade. They both took their seats on opposite sides of the limo, facing each other, though Josef still hadn't spoken. He just kept looking at Mick like he'd been caught misbehaving and Josef was the stern parent about to administer the lecture. Which in a way, he was.

Mick flinched first, as Josef knew he would. "Fine, Josef. Go ahead. Get it off your chest. Tell me what an ass I've been." He looked resigned to the verbal berating that was coming.

Josef just watched Mick a while longer before speaking, seemingly no longer disappointed but dispassionate. "You never were going to tell her anything, were you? She'd have to step down off her pedestal for intimacies with a vampire, and you just weren't going to allow that."

Mick reflexively prepared to defend himself. "What was I supposed to do? She's human, Josef. I could kill her. That thought may not bother you much, but it does bother me. Every time I look at Beth I want to be with her, hell, even when she's not around, but no night of passion is worth her life."

Mick bitterly thought back to the night he was turned, the promised pleasures of one evening replaced by a lifetime full of new regrets. Beth would be another regret, of that he was certain, but she would not be another of his victims, another lifeless face for him to see every time he closed his eyes. He ran both hands through his hair, trying to settle his nerves.

Several ice cubes clinked into a crystal glass followed by a large measure of single malt scotch. There was no second glass forthcoming for Mick. "You know, for my sake, I'd appreciate if you clear these things up with your freshies before you leave town. I'm not your babysitter. Beth clearly has no idea that your intentions remain completely honorable, and I think I'd rather you break that little tidbit of news to her, because I guarantee you she's not going to take it well. But c'est la vie when vampires are involved, and the sooner she learns it the better. I may be your friend, but Beth is your problem, and it's not my job to pick up the pieces of her shattered expectations."

"Dammit, Josef. It's not like I'm going to just get up and walk out of her life! I'll be there for her. I know fidelity and reliability are beyond the scope of your experience, but I understand all too well my responsibilities to Beth." Mick was still smarting from Josef's cold demeanor and he let his displeasure show in his voice.

"Really. You understand your responsibilities to her? Let me tell you something, Mick, as your friend." Josef was finally looking at him again, and it dawned on Mick that what he was seeing was not disinterest in Josef's demeanor, it was rage, carefully contained through centuries of practice, but rage nonetheless. "You have one more, completely undeserved chance at getting this right with her. I've seen this happen with human women before, Mick. If you keep trying to protect her from who and what you really are, and you don't give her what she needs from you, you're hurting her just as much as if you'd struck her a physical blow."

Mick started to interrupt, but Josef held up his hand to cut him off. "No, hear me out on this. You have this woman doubting everything about herself. She's afraid she isn't beautiful enough, or smart enough, or sexy enough for you; there has to be something wrong with her that you don't want her. Jesus, Mick, she's so in love with you, she's afraid she's too human to be worthy of a fine upstanding vampire like yourself. Do you not get that?"

As if the mere recognition of Josef's rage had awakened his own, the volume of conversation increased to a yell. "What the hell do you know about it, Josef? I'm the one that's watched over her every day for over twenty years. Not you! You don't know anything about her." Mick's voice quieted some near the end of the tirade, and he continued almost at a whisper, "she deserves better than me, Josef, and if I can just keep my distance for a while longer she'll find a nice human man that will make her happy." Turning to study the passing streetlights, he refused to meet Josef's gaze from the shadows on the other side of the car.

They sat in silence for better than fifteen minutes as Josef nursed his drink and stared at his friend disapprovingly while Mick rested his head back on the seat and searched the ceiling for answers, wondering how he was going to make Beth and Josef, for that matter, see reason. Finally, Josef set down the empty glass and leaned forward towards Mick. "She won't, you know."

Having been lost in his own thoughts, Mick wondered what Josef was talking about. "She won't what, Josef?" he said with a trace of irritation. Josef was interrupting the circular logic argument that Mick was formulating in his head. Again.

"Find a human and settle down."

"Sure she will. It's just a phase, Josef. The fascination she thinks she has for me and for vamps will pass. I'll figure out a way to bow out of daily routine a little at a time over the next few months, and eventually she'll move on to someone who is deserving of her."

Josef moved his hand back and forth in Mick's field of vision. "Hello in there? Mick? You haven't been listening to a goddamn word I've been saying. Wake the fuck up! She's not just going to wander away and pretend like she has no idea vampires exist, or she'd have married that DA she was dating. You and Beth together are as much of a nightmare as you and Coraline, only in a much more polite and less violent 'let's destroy each other' sort of way. Look at the two of you. You're killing each other by degrees, Mick. If you were serious about letting her go you'd have left town twenty times over by now. Hell, I'll drive you back to the airport and pay to fly you out of the country, even set you up with the relocation guy. Is that what you want? Because you're sure acting like what you really want is Beth."

Mick opened his mouth to protest everything Josef just said, but closed it again. He was tired from his trip and desperately needed a few hours in the freezer to help clear his head. But apparently they weren't going to his place, they were headed for Josef's house.

"Josef, just drop me off at my apartment. We can finish this later."

"We're going to finish this now. You're right about one thing, Mick, Beth does deserve better than you, you spineless bastard. If you don't figure out a way to stop hurting her while trying not to hurt her, you'll lose her, and not to a human. She'll end up in the arms of another vamp, one who might not love her as much as you do, and she'll ask them to turn her."

"She'd never—"

"The hell she wouldn't. You've given her the barest taste of what it means to be immortal, to be loved and cherished by someone who'd give all of that up for her out of love, and you don't think she'd give up her mortal life to another vamp on the slimmest of chances that it would allow her to be with you? Why is that so inconceivable?"

The limo pulled up into the ten-car garage and Josef waited for his chauffer to open the door before making a move to get out. As Josef moved to the door, Mick couldn't help but notice the other man's anger had been replaced by that eerie look of determination he always got when it was time to do what needed to be done, no matter how unpleasant or difficult. It was the look he'd seen only a few times, and had hoped not to see again. This was not good.

Mick stopped Josef with a hand on his arm and asked calmly, "why do you care, Josef? You've stood by for the last fifty years and never pushed me this hard about how I've chosen to lead my life or my relationship with Beth. What changed?"

"What's different is that now I know who Beth will ask to sire her when she realizes you don't love her enough to do what has to be done."

"Who?" Mick asked as if totally unaware of what was really happening.

"Me," said Josef before he stepped out of the car and headed for the elevator, never once looking back at Mick.

Too stunned to move, Mick sat speechless and tried to understand what had just happened. Josef had said on the phone Beth had asked him for information, and knowing Josef, he'd answered if for no other reason than it would make Mick miserable. But what had Beth said to Josef? What had she asked of him? And why would he call Mick back to town emergently over a simple conversation about one of his favorite topics?

The chauffer cleared his throat and Mick realized that he'd been standing there waiting for him to get out of the car since Josef left. "I'm assuming you have instructions not to take me home," Mick said as he got out of the car.

"That's correct, sir. You are to proceed upstairs to Mr. Kostan's office, if I am not mistaken. I believe you know the way, do you not?" The man was calm and polite, but none of his demeanor rubbed off on Mick.

"Fine," Mick said curtly and got out of the car. Their conversation was not done and Josef was apparently not going to let this go.

The office was on the third floor, and right next to Josef's "bedroom." While he didn't actually sleep there (he slept in a locked freezer room in the basement, Mick knew), Josef had a better than king-sized bed in which he "entertained" his freshies and selected women who shared his culinary appetites. Why they were meeting here and not downstairs in the usual living room, Mick didn't know, but he had a feeling he was about to find out.

He slumped down into one of the soft leather chairs and continued trying to process what he'd heard. Josef sat in his usual chair behind the desk with his arm around the beautiful woman in his lap. She had her long hair pinned up to expose her graceful neck, and a sleeveless silk shirt that left her wrists bare. The look on her face was of pure expectation and sensuality; and it wasn't directed at Josef.

"So, Mick, you remember Natasha, don't you?"

Mick smiled and tried to be polite since she was obviously there only for a distraction, "of course, nice to see you again." Then he looked back to Josef and made a circular motion with his hand, indicating that he should go ahead and have his snack so they could finish their conversation.

"She's here for you, Mick," Josef said with a hint of threat in his voice. Normally Josef enjoyed taunting Mick with his freshies, but this was no longer good natured.

Mick wasn't liking where this was going at all. He tried not to hurt the woman's feelings, but Josef damn well knew he didn't drink from freshies. "Well, no offense to the lovely Natasha, but I'm going to have to pass this time."

She pouted but made no move to get up, and Josef kept his arm wrapped around her waist. Usually a polite refusal was enough to move them past this point, but the rules had apparently changed.

"So you're going to leave Beth then?" Josef asked as if he already knew the answer and Mick just hadn't caught up.

Mick sighed and sat back in the chair, crossing his legs and doing his best to look relaxed. "We already discussed this, Josef. I'm not going to 'leave' her, but just because she asked you some questions doesn't mean either of us is ready to move to a more... physical relationship. She's still getting over Josh's death, and--"

Josef cut him off with a dismissing wave of his hand. "Trust me, Mick. She's over it. And whatever gave you the idea she wasn't ready?" He turned his attention to the neck of the woman perched on his lap and watched the blood pulse beneath it. "I'm sure you aren't ready, Mick, but I know for certain that delicious little blonde of yours is ready for anything." Josef sank his teeth into the woman's soft neck and the smell of blood filled the room. The sound of Josef swallowing combined with the moans of pleasure coming from his meal sparked a slight pang jealousy in Mick, but he tried to focus on the new Van Gogh adorning the wall instead of remembering what it was like to satisfy his hunger on the fresh blood of a willing young woman. Mick knew the display was for his benefit, but it didn't change anything.

Josef's fangs retracted and he lazily licked the last of the blood from the woman's skin and his lips, all the while watching Mick's reaction. There was simply nothing like the taste of young female blood spiced with desire, he decided, and it was high time Mick remembered that. After setting Natasha down on the sofa next to Mick's chair, Josef returned to the more important task at hand. The blood had helped to sway him away from violence as a means of altering Mick's outlook, though he couldn't rule it out if another try at logic didn't yield the result he was looking for.

"Enjoy your meal?" Mick asked him.

"Her blood was delightful, but not so delicious as Beth's." On the other hand, maybe they were going to jump straight to the violence.

"Very funny, Josef. Are we done here?"

"I wasn't joking, Mick."

"Riiiight. Because I'm sure that Beth wouldn't have bothered to call me if she was attacked by my best friend. But good try, Josef."

"You don't believe me? Then call her, right now." Josef threw his cell phone into Mick's lap. "And who said I attacked her? I distinctly remember being invited, no, begged to drink from her. Now that was one of the best meals I've had in decades. You never told me she had such a rare blood type. AO negative, right?"

Mick had never shared that information with Josef, for the reason that it might encourage him too much. Josef stood back and waited, expecting Mick to lunge for him in the next few seconds, but the attack never came. Closing his eyes, Mick leaned his head forward into his hands, then ran them across the stubble on his cheeks.

"You really did feed from her." It felt like Josef had just stabbed a silver spike into his stomach. The pain was penetrating and consuming in a way a physical wound could never be.

"Glad you finally caught on," Josef said quietly as he sat down next to the sleeping Natasha and ran a fingertip across her cheek absentmindedly. Reality was a bitch. "So, you going to try to kill me now or do you want to understand what is going through Beth's mind and why she asked me for something she didn't feel comfortable asking you for? Or have you already figured it out?"

"What did I do to her, Josef? Why?"

Josef honestly felt sorry for Mick. "Because she loves you, Mick, and she thought the problem was her. She loves you so much she can't even see your considerable flaws. Beth was convinced that her blood wasn't any good, that you somehow disliked the taste of her that one time in the desert and didn't have the heart to tell her. I tried telling her that she was wrong, but she was desperate to find out why you didn't want her body. She doesn't want a platonic relationship with you where you kiss her on the cheek at the end of an evening out solving crimes and being threatened by the bad guys. Mick, Beth is a healthy, beautiful, young woman who would do anything, and I do mean anything, to feel like you love her."

"But I could _kill _her. There's no more cure, no Coraline to help me find more. I won't sentence Beth to the same hell either."

"It's only hell because you make it so. Your saving grace, your angel, is waiting for you, Mick, you just won't take her hand. The universe has given you a gift that you refuse to accept. Beth now knows about freshies, how we feed during sex, and how the bite can be pleasurable for both involved. The cat's already out of the bag. She knows you're a vamp, so quit trying to hide it from her."

Natasha stirred and Josef whispered to her to run along and that he'd see her later. She smiled and kissed him before walking out the door and winking at Mick, who didn't bother to even try being pleasant in return.

Mick finally looked Josef in the eye. "Tell me you didn't… you and she didn't…" He couldn't even say the words, as if the mere utterance would make them true.

"No, I didn't sleep with your girlfriend. Oh, I thought about it, but contrary to what you might think, I do actually enjoy having two friends that don't just like me for my money. But I did let her enjoy the feeding, and believe me, Beth was anything but repulsed. She even watched me feed from Sasha just before I called you, and it turned her on. So stop trying to pretend that she's so innocent and unable to understand what it means to have sex with a vampire, or to be bitten out of more than just necessity."

"Can I ask you a personal question?"

"Yes. I may not answer it, but what the hell." Josef finally relaxed since it didn't seem like Mick was going to use violence to solve his anger management issues this time.

"Did you sleep with Sara before you tried to turn her?"

"Yes. I did. More than once even, and I was careful with her."

"Define careful." Mick was finally emerging from the other side of the deep dark hole he'd dug for himself. _About time._

"Well, I made sure I wasn't hungry to start with. I always fed from two freshies before we even made it to the bedroom, and she wasn't my first human, Mick. I had Lola to make sure I didn't kill my first human lover, and eventually it became easier to keep control. You never would let Coraline teach you, and you are apparently immune to the considerable charms of my freshies."

Mick was now up pacing like a caged animal. Josef could almost see the gears turning in his head as he went through the short list of his options. He propped his feet up on the coffee table and stretched back on the leather cushions. "You're obviously having trouble thinking or we'd have been done with this conversation half and hour ago. You want me to walk you through each possibility or can we just skip to the end where I tell you your only viable option?"

Mick glared at him for a second before realizing that Josef was the only vamp in the world he could go to for help with this, and it was no longer possible to pretend that no problem existed. Not after Beth had... had asked him to bite her. Mick saw her in Josef's arms, her face slack with need, his mouth working at her wrist. Was it jealousy he felt when he thought about it, or desire?

"Hey, Romeo. Snap out of it!"

"Sorry." Mick had stopped pacing and just stood in front his best friend. "I don't know what the protocol for this is, so I'll just ask. Josef, will you help me with Beth? Make sure I don't hurt her? And lend me a couple of freshies beforehand?"

Josef stood and clasped a hand on Mick's shoulder while that self-satisfied smile of his said it all. "Beth will be glad to hear you're on board with her plan. Welcome back to paradise, my friend."


	6. Chapter 6

Beth sat at her desk all day, too distracted to work, until Maureen finally told her to go home

Beth sat at her desk all day, too distracted to work, until Maureen finally told her to go home. She hadn't been able to sleep much after Josef left, and she'd been on edge since Mick called to let her know he was back in town and he'd see her tonight. Her mind alternated between the delicious thoughts of what could happen if the three of them found themselves suddenly naked in bed together, and how miserable she would be if this alienated Mick to the point that their relationship couldn't recover. Then Beth wondered, "what relationship?" They were friends who kiss occasionally but know that there isn't going to be anything else. Does that count as an actual adult romance? Her last several serious relationships had all involved sex when the time had been right, but she wasn't sure if the time was ever going to be right with Mick given the way things were going. Why she'd ever thought inviting another vampire into the mix was going to convince Mick it was okay to do more than just kiss her good night she had no idea. Maybe that's all he wanted from her anyway. This was not going to work.

She grudgingly gathered her things from her desk and headed home. It was, after all, close to 4 anyway, and she had not a single line of copy to her name for the day, and not a bit of progress on any story. Another night at home alone moping might make her feel better, she decided, and she headed to the grocery store to pick up some Ben and Jerry's. Now there were two uncomplicated men she could be alone with who always made her feel good. Beth opened her door and threw her keys on the counter while setting her laptop bag down on a chair. After deciding to forgo the bowl and just eat out of the carton, she grabbed a spoon and headed for the living room to watch…

The spoon clanked on the floor and the carton fell out of her hands.

"Hello, Beth," Josef said with his usual enthusiasm for catching her off guard. He was dressed in a tuxedo of all things.

"Christ, Josef, you scared me. Don't do that anymore." She bent down to pick up her ice cream and spoon.

He was suddenly behind her with his hands on her shoulders as she stood up. "You're not afraid of little old me, are you?" Beth's breathing sped up while he waited for her answer.

"You know I am," she said as she stepped forward out of his grasp. He let her go. "I don't remember calling you to invite myself along to your evening's activities, so what are you doing here?" She settled down onto the couch to eat her ice cream.

Josef looked at the carton in her hand and shook his head. "Depressed? No reason to be, you know."

"Really? Because I think I've thoroughly made a fool out of myself. Yes, I'm having second thoughts. I don't want you to mention our agreement to Mick, and I'm not going to bring it up. Okay? And I'll just make sure I'm not around Mick until the bite finishes healing, so you won't have to tell him about that either. You aren't the only one who can keep a secret." She brushed her fingers over the two small punctures on her neck absentmindedly as she spoke, though her mind was reliving the moment in detail.

Josef sat down beside her on the couch and took the ice cream from her hands, setting it down on the coffee table. He took her hands in his and slowly raised them to his lips, but at the last moment turned them over and kissed each on the wrist. Every second he watched her eyes, listened to her heartbeat, and tried to decided how to handle her skittishness.

"What made you change your mind, Beth?" he asked without looking up from her arms. Josef's fingers brushed over the pulse points on her wrists in small circles.

"Eighteen hours of reflection? There's no way Mick is going to agree to any of this." She pulled her hands back.

Heading for the door, Josef called her bluff. "Wow, Mick is really going to be disappointed. But at least he's finally back to drinking fresh blood, and I think I can find a way to get rid of all those roses. Hmmm, maybe Mick and I can just catch the game tonight. I wonder if I can get tickets…"

"What did you say?" Beth interrupted him.

"I said Mick was going to be disappointed. He spent all afternoon at my place planning out a romantic dinner for all three of us. He actually is in quite a good mood after his first decent meal in decades, which has been reported to me by his meal to be more than adequate in technique, but I'll just go tell him that you don't want..."

Beth was on her feet and following Josef in his path towards the door. "You told him? And he said yes?"

"Of course, my dear. Did you really think I was going to leave this to chance? I have an opportunity to enjoy you thoroughly," he looked her up and down, "as long as Mick is along for the ride, and I'm certainly not going to pass up such a promising invitation."

The hope that had filled Beth's eyes for a moment suddenly drained away. "Josef? What did he say about the, you know, the..." The insecurity was still there, and wasn't going away until Mick reassured her with just how much he loved her.

Josef's eyes flashed to their vampire blue as he pulled her up against him and brushed her hair back from the healing puncture wounds on her neck. "The bite, Beth? How much you enjoyed it? Or the idea of the two of us sharing you tonight? You know, there are pleasures we can give you that no human ever could." Josef's voice had become lower with the change in his eyes, and the anxiety melted away with the effect he was having on her body. She knew she should have been afraid, but all she could think about was how safe she felt with Mick as a vampire and how some of that must have carried over to Josef.

A shiver ran up her spine as his lips descended on hers, surprisingly gentle for the look in his eyes when he touched her. His kiss promised much more than he allowed at that moment, but as far as Josef was concerned, he had accomplished his goal in that she was breathless and thoroughly distracted by the time he pulled back and let his eyes slip back to their human appearance.

Beth couldn't help raising an eyebrow at Josef as he led her over to the sofa and sat down, gently pulling her down beside him. "I'm surprised, Josef. You can't wait until we get back to your place?" she said with feigned disapproval.

"Believe me, darling, you make it exceedingly difficult," he said with his usual smile. He had no qualms about making it known he was attracted to her, and the change for Beth from what she was used to with Mick's reluctance was quite refreshing. It felt good to be desired, right somehow.

"So, I do believe that a gala performance of 'Phantom of the Opera' begins in just about three hours, which should be plenty of time for you to get ready and for us to meet Mick at the theater for dinner." Josef talked about going to the theater in much the same way he did about going to the ballpark. He simply expected Beth to go with him, and she really did have a hard time saying no to such offers.

The tuxedo was stylish and well fitted, Beth thought, and the fact that Josef was wearing it at all suggested that she was going to have a hard time finding anything to wear to match it. Maybe that dress she had from last year covering that charity ball, but…

"I'm not sure I have anything suitable for such a formal event… I'll have to go look." She started for her bedroom but Josef gently laid a hand on her arm and smiled.

"No, I don't think that little cream-colored dress will do you proper justice for tonight," and he grabbed his cell and hit a number on speed dial before Beth had a chance to voice her disbelief of Josef's knowledge of her wardrobe. He had been in her apartment before she got home... "Send her up," was all he said before closing the phone and waiting. He loved surprising the women in his life, and whether he intended to or not, he had let Beth become part of his life. Sure, he had to share her with Mick as long as Mick behaved himself, but she would still be his for a time. And perhaps again if Mick falters.

"Um… Josef? Who is coming up exactly?" Beth asked once she recovered her composure.

"Don't worry. You'll like Simone. Trust me," Josef said as he placed a chaste kiss on her cheek. There was a knock on her door a second later. Clearly whoever it was had not been waiting downstairs.

Josef was at the door before Beth could react and was escorting in a twenty-something woman with dark blue eyes and long black hair, and she was carrying an extra long garment bag over one shoulder. Her smile was warm and inviting, and as much as Beth wanted to dislike this stranger that Josef had just invited into her home, she couldn't.

"Hi. You must be Beth." She turned to Josef, "she's just as beautiful as you described." The comment was sincere and Beth found herself blushing slightly as the woman turned back to her. "I'm Simone, so nice to meet you. I'll be helping you get ready for your evening if you don't mind. I have a gorgeous Valentino in here that should look great on you. Why don't we go fit it for you?" Simone was thrilled and her giggle as she pulled Beth into the bedroom was infectious. Beth felt like she was back in high school going shopping at the mall for prom, but this time with men really waiting for her.

Josef found himself standing in her living room again, waiting for her to get dressed. He really hoped this wasn't going to become a habit because he'd much rather be helping her get undressed given the choice. It was time to check up on Mick and settle the other third of their number's nerves.

"Yeah, she's getting dressed with Simone now. I had her pick something easy to get out of when the time comes." Mick was still uneasy with the evening's agenda, but he knew there was no way he could back out now. Josef decided it was time he got used to the idea, and made no secret of his own personal interest in removing Beth's garments. Too bad Simone hadn't agreed to the Velcro.

"You swear this was her idea? Not something you started there under duress?" Mick asked for the tenth time.

"You were dropped on your head as a fledgling, weren't you? Here I thought Coraline was kidding when she said that. Look,Mick, she was upset, but it wasn't of my making, it was yours. I was trying to reassure your sweetheart that just because you were being an ass didn't mean that you weren't in love with her. She figured out that yours truly being involved would improve the crash test rating long before you did." Josef was still amazed it took Mick this long to come to the same conclusion, well, and to admit that he might need help with this.

"So everything is still a go for this evening?"

"You doubted my abilities? She's nervous, Mick. She's worried you'll change your mind, or that somehow you'll be upset with her for suggesting this, and she's insecure, largely because of you. Now, as we discussed, you are going to reassure her from the beginning how desirable and she is. Aren't you." The last part wasn't a question.

Mick couldn't help but laugh a little. He was just as nervous and insecure, having always run from intimacy with Beth when he wanted to stay, and old habits die hard. "We've been through this and I'm going to make sure she understands. And if there's a problem, you'll be there to help me get the point across. Josef, just try not to enjoy it too much, okay?"

"You don't honestly expect me to agree to that, do you? I imagine we'll be underway here in an hour." Josef hung up, wondering if he really was going to spend the evening calming everyone's nerves instead of reveling in his good fortune. Maybe he should have hired a shrink instead of a personal stylist.

Josef knocked on Beth's bedroom door and wasn't surprised when Simone answered it. "Tell Cinderella we need to be in the car in thirty minutes or it turns into a pumpkin."

"You said I'd have forty-five with her, so can it, Mr. Impatient. You can't rush perfection." Before he could open his mouth to protest, the door had been closed again. Josef could only smile; they'd have fifteen minutes to spare.

While Josef checked on the Asian markets and a few pending deals in the former Soviet Union, Beth showered and had her hair expertly done by the friendly Simone. The dress was absolutely stunning on her, she thought. It was a nearly floor length dark green velvet, sleeveless but with a matching embroidered jacket. Beth smiled when she noticed the ¾ length sleeves were only that length because they had been artfully and purposefully folded back. Simone was quick to reassure her that they did indeed come down all the way to the wrist if she wanted to change the look. "Perfect for dinner," Beth thought with a quick flash of Josef enjoying his fact-finding mission. Overall, the look was elegant and sophisticated, modest until the jacket was removed, and the soft material was heaven.

When Beth finally emerged from her room, exactly forty-five minutes later Josef noted, she was stunning. The dress had helped her confidence as he knew it would, and if his heart could beat it would have stopped at the site of her. As it was, he had to settle for a hungry stare that left Beth with no doubt as to his opinion.

"Beth, you look stunning. Mick will be stumbling all over himself just to be by your side this evening. But I notice that something is missing… jewels perhaps? To complement your dress?"

Beth realized Simone hadn't said a word about earrings or a necklace or anything, but before she could head back into her room to look for something, Josef pulled out a velvet case from the inside pocket of his jacket. "I believe these will do quite nicely," and he opened it to reveal an emerald and diamond necklace, set entirely in white gold, with what had to be several hundred carats of stones. Each one of the matching earrings probably cost more than she made in six months.

"God, Josef, they're beautiful."

"Not as beautiful as you are." He loved watching her face light up at the site of such a treasure. He carefully picked up the necklace while Beth held the case and moved around behind her, draping it around her neck and fastening it in back. His hands were replaced by his lips and she wanted to just collapse back into his arms and beg him to stop teasing her, but she could feel his smile against her neck as he gauged her reaction. When he finally worked his way around to the front, he stepped back to admire the view while Beth added the earrings.

"So what do you think?" Beth asked, already knowing the answer.

"I think we might not even make it to the theater," Josef said as he smiled at her, pleased to see her so self-assured. He'd have to remember to tip Simone well.

Beth fingered the necklace while she said, "I've never worn anything this expensive before, but I'll try to make sure they get back to you intact at the end of the evening."

"Who said you had to give them back?" Josef took her hand and leaned down to whisper in her ear. "Just wear them to bed when I ask and you can keep them forever."

Too stunned to answer right away, she wasn't given a chance as he took her arm and led her down to the waiting limo, helping her inside.

As he settled himself next to her, of course close enough to be touching from shoulder to knee, Josef took Beth's hand and held it without demanding more of her.

"Thank you, Josef, for the dress, the jewelry, helping with Mick… everything." There were unshed tears in her eyes.

He smiled and handed her his handkerchief. "Don't thank me yet, Beth. I'm sure it will be my pleasure, and yours too, this evening. And may I say that you look ravishing, my dear, or perhaps you look ready to be ravished, I haven't decided yet." He leaned over and kissed the side of her neck, running his tongue over his bite. "Are you completely certain we have to wait until Mick with us?"


	7. Chapter 7

As always, thank you all for the reviews. I'm happy to discover I'm not the only one that enjoys playing in my imagination

(One quick note about the actual liquid refreshment. In spite of what they said on Moonlight, vampires, in my trained medical opinion, would have been exposed already if they were going for arterial blood all the time. Small holes in veins clot off much more quickly and reliably than arteries, and I've seen even small punctures in arteries require considerable intervention to stop the bleeding, even if we go with the Tanya Huff/Blood Ties premise that vampires have coagulants in their saliva. So in this story, our heroes are going for veins since they don't want Beth to die.)

Thanks for reading!

-Laurelin

--

Josef finally drew back from the now-breathless Beth and smiled at her, letting her have one fleeting glance of his fangs as they retracted. He knew that soon they'd be coated in her blood, but for now he had to make due with teasing her. "Now, now, we wouldn't want Mick to get jealous, would we?" he said as he wiped some of Beth's lipstick from his lips.

"I certainly hope that won't be a problem," Beth said as she took the handkerchief out of Josef's hands and tried to tidy up her makeup, trying to cover up her nervousness. While he watched her retouch the color on her lips, he couldn't help but think just how much he'd like to mess that up again. The fact that her lipstick was the color of blood didn't help cool his desire any. Fortunately, they were pulling up into his driveway as Beth finished with her makeup and he was therefore not going to have to explain how he skipped a few steps of their plan and just took her right there on the seat of the limo.

"Whether or not Mick might be jealous of me is irrelevant. He just simply isn't going to be able to resist you. Trust me, I'm having quite the difficulty with that right now."

Josef helped her out of the car, acting like the perfect gentleman once outside of the close confines of the limo. Beth suddenly remembered that he was old enough to have been a gentleman many times over and probably knew the routine much better than she did. The thought made her question how her relative inexperience was going to stack up against the combined centuries of her two promised lovers.

As if noticing the slight reluctance in her step, Josef took her arm and walked them both into his private elevator. "Don't worry, Beth. You have Mick and I wrapped around your little finger and we will do anything for you. _Anything,"_ he breathed into her ear. "So realize that you are the one in charge in the room, not me or Mick, and what you say goes. It will help your confidence to embrace this little truth, and nothing, I mean nothing, is sexier than seeing you confident in your obvious beauty and allure. I'll be there to make sure nothing happens that you don't want, and to make sure you get everything you do want." He kissed her hand with a look in his eye that betrayed just how much of an effect she had on him.

The elevator doors opened on the second floor and Mick was waiting for them, dressed in a very similar tuxedo to Josef's. His hands were clasped in front of him very formally, like he'd heard their footsteps and was waiting for them to enter. Mick's somber expression on his face was quickly replaced by awe as Beth entered the room on Josef's arm and Mick walked forward to meet her. With a knowing smile Josef led her forward and handed her off to Mick, unable to shake the image of a father giving away his daughter's hand in marriage, then going on the honeymoon too.

Trying to clear his head of the latter thought, Josef said to the couple, "I'll go check on dinner. You two get, ah, reacquainted."

They both watched him go and Beth fought to keep her composure. Seeing Mick looking so devastatingly handsome, and knowing what was on their schedule for the evening gave her butterflies. She tried to take Josef's advice to heart about being confident while she smiled at Mick and took in his reaction.

"You look amazing," he told her as he took in her silhouette before folding her into his strong embrace. The smell of him and the feel of his arms around her instantly made Beth feel safe and loved, and she held onto him a few seconds longer to revel in the feel of it.

"Thank you." Beth returned Mick's smile and wondered at how she could ever feel so good as she did right at that moment, her nerves having been kept at bay by the reassuring faces of the two men she was to share a bed with in a few short hours. Though before that she was going to have to sit with them, likely between them, in a darkened theater for several hours while they watched Phantom of the Opera, and she wasn't certain her patience would be up to the test. As much as she wanted to see the production, she seriously doubted that she would ever be able to concentrate on what was happening on stage with both of these men at her side.

Mick still had his arms around her waist at the end of their hug, even though he'd pulled his shoulders back, seemingly unwilling to let her go. "I missed you," he said as he slowly closed the distance between their faces, his eyes drinking in every detail of her lips.

"I missed you too," Beth replied in a whisper just before Mick's lips lightly brushed her own. The kiss was feather-light and lingering, but sensual in a way that a deeper kiss couldn't be. It was the first sip of fine wine before enjoying the glass, and Beth knew at that moment that he had every intention of finishing that glass tonight.

His lips moved to her cheek, her jaw, and finally to her neck where Josef's bite was still healing. Beth immediately stiffened when Mick planted a kiss over each puncture, thinking that for certain this was the point where Mick would backpedal and be offended. But that moment never came to pass, and he simply moved to pay equal attention to the other side of her neck. When he reached the same pulse point on her untouched side, she felt the barest scrape of his teeth and instantly relaxed into his arms, the tension replaced by the building of her desire. She leaned her head slightly away from Mick's mouth, opening the expanse of her neck to him, and the sudden tightening of his arms around her made her whimper with anticipation of the bite.

Josef cleared his throat loudly. "Mick, you were supposed to wait for me to start dinner."

The vampire growled low at Josef when Mick pulled his head back, and Josef couldn't help but notice how relaxed Beth was at that instant, as if that primal sound had helped her surrender to the moment. Josef's vampire answered Mick's challenge and their tension mounted.

"She may be yours forever, Mick, but until you learn to control yourself, she also belongs to me. I promised to keep her safe, which means you don't feed until I say so."

Josef waited for Mick to understand who was alpha male there, and once Mick's features returned to human Josef's followed suit. When Beth finally realized there wasn't going to be a bite just yet, her eyes fluttered open to find Josef standing next to them. He took her hand and kissed the pulse points in her wrist before leading her out of Mick's grasp and towards the elegantly set table. Several candelabras provided soft light and red rose petals had been scattered over the table.

"Appetizers haven't even been served yet and Mick is ready for the main course. Please forgive him, Beth, he must have been overtaken by your considerable charms." Josef smiled at the two of them with a raised eyebrow that said he was looking forward to exploring her charms further.

Mick sat down next to Beth and looked somewhat chastised. "I'm sorry, Beth, I just got a little carried away. I didn't believe what Josef had said about your ah, response, to his bite until just now. If you'd only told me earlier..."

Beth bit back the comment about how it would previously only have alienated and repulsed him and settled for, "well, now that you are back on freshies, how does it feel?" She had to commend Mick's progress with all of this but wondered just what Josef had said and done to convince him of the error of his ways. It couldn't have been easy.

If he could have blushed at that moment, he would have. "I'm feeling a little more clear-headed, thanks, especially about you, and tonight."

"If by that he means he's not such a self-pitying, depressed, miserable excuse for a vampire, then he's certainly feeling more clear-headed," Josef chimed in. "The fresh blood is always good for the mind, and a few other parts of the body…"

"Does that matter?" Beth couldn't resist teasing Mick just a little bit, given his drastic change of heart.

Before Mick could answer, Josef was answering her. "We'll just have to find out later tonight. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised what your blood does for him." Neither vamp failed to notice the subtle twitch of her shoulders at the mention of drinking her blood. Josef smiled at his two friends from the head of the table. They had no idea what they were in for tonight.

He looked as three humans came through the door. "Ah, good. Dinner is served."

A man in his late thirties and wearing a crisp white chef's shirt placed a Caesar salad and hot French rolls in front of Beth, while a statuesque brunette uncorked and poured a small amount of sherry into Josef's glass, waiting for his approval. Once given, a glass was poured for each of them, in addition to a glass of water for Beth that Josef encouraged her to drink.

"Madame," the chef addressed Beth, "when you are ready for your main course, please ring the silver bell on the table and I will bring it to you. We have a lovely Chateaubriand béarnaise with fresh asparagus and warm bread, if it is to your liking?" The French accent was genuine and her mouth watered at the thought of a real French chef preparing her meal. Tonight would truly be a night of firsts.

"That would be wonderful, thank you," Beth smiled at Josef and then at Mick. For some reason, the thought of watching the two of them drink blood shortly did not diminish her appetite. She was going to need plenty of energy tonight if all went well.

The men sipped their sherry, savoring the taste but staring at Beth with a hunger in their eyes that left no doubt they'd rather be enjoying her. They exchanged a few glances that Beth was having trouble understanding, but she was sure one of them from Josef was a warning to Mick to behave himself.

Mick finally broke the silence as Beth finished her salad. "So, Beth, have you seen Phantom before?"

"Not in years, though I remember enjoying it." She set her fork down. "But I was thinking maybe we could just skip the production if you don't mind."

Taking her hand gently, Mick did his best to be unthreatening as he asked her, "are you having second thoughts? About tonight? It's okay if you are… we don't have to."

A quick glance at Josef solidified her resolve. "Of course I'm not having second thoughts. I'm no longer willing to wait, and you aren't getting out of this that easily." She rang the bell to summon her main course while leaning over to kiss Mick on the lips. He responded immediately, and when she deepened the contact he tried to slide an arm around her shoulders, but she pulled back immediately. "Waiting's a bitch, isn't it, Mick?" she said with her face returning to within inches of his, only to sit back casually in her chair as he attempted to close the distance. The expression on Josef's face gave away just how much he was enjoying watching Beth toy with his best friend.

Mick looked at Josef for clarification of what just happened, but Josef just laughed. "I told you, Mick, you'll need to spend some time tonight convincing Beth that you've seen the error of your ways. I think she's been more than patient with you these last few months, don't you? Honestly, I'd recommend taking a little sip from her before the main event. She likes that very much, don't you Beth?" Josef was out of his chair and standing next to hers before she realized what had happened, and he was pulling back her hair to reveal the bite mark, as if showing it off to Mick. His fingers barely touched her skin but it was enough to make her glad she was already sitting. She wasn't sure if her knees would have held her up. There was too much desire tied up with that bite.

As her main course arrived, Josef did not bother to pause in his gentle caress of her neck, but soon moved down to the soft velvet covering her shoulders.

"Don't let me stop you from eating, Beth. You're going to need your stamina tonight. Vampires do not easily tire." Josef said seductively.

Beth tried to pick up her fork and knife but it was almost impossible to concentrate on her meal with Josef's fingertips exploring her neck and shoulders. Her eyes closed involuntarily as she focused on his touch. Not sure if he should join in or wait as seemed to be his punishment, Mick took the gold-plated utensils from her and cut thin slices of the filet and dipped them in the rich sauce. He touched her lips lightly with the food and she opened her eyes, now full of a hunger beyond that for food, as delicious as it was. Beth met Mick's equally hungry stare and let the bite of the succulent Chateaubriand slide into her mouth.

A few more bites of food and Josef suddenly ceased his ministrations but didn't move away. Beth intended to question why he had stopped, but then she noticed the two women who had entered quietly while she had been…distracted.

"Ah, it appears our meals have arrived as well, Mick."

Mick set down the fork he'd been feeding Beth with and winked at her.

"Which would you prefer? AB negative, or B positive?" Josef said, indicating each woman in turn, his eyes fading to their vampire light blue.

"B positive I think," Mick replied, exactly as Josef knew he would. A long glance at Beth ensued from Mick, a chance for her to voice some sort of protest or to leave the room, was met with an unspoken challenge to continue, to feed, right there in front of her. The redhead sauntered over to Mick and draped herself over his legs, offering simultaneously her wrist and neck for his choice. Mick looked to Josef first, as if unsure that he could feed while Beth was watching him.

Josef laughed. "They'll both enjoy it, but if you insist, I'll go first." Josef's eyes never left Beth while his fangs elongated and he pulled close the statuesque brunette and steadied her head with one hand, the other wrapping around her back as he pulled her forcefully up against him to plunge his teeth into the woman's neck. Only when she sighed in contentment and Josef needed to swallow did he close his eyes and give himself over to the pleasure of the blood.

Breathing in deeply, Mick knew Josef had been right. He could smell Beth's arousal and he couldn't deny that she enjoyed watching Josef feed. They both did, really. It whet Mick's appetite for his own meal, and he let Beth see the change in his features as he took the woman's offered wrist in an iron grip, much as he had done with hers so long ago in that hotel room, feeling both of the pulses there. When he bit down, Mick heard not only his freshie's heart rate increase, but also Beth's.

The blood was hot and rich as it poured into his mouth, overwhelming Mick's control only for a moment. The blood finally calmed him and satisfied his hunger in a way that the morgue blood never did. Only now that he was getting what he needed could he see that he'd been on the brink of starvation for years. Tonight was truly a feast for all the senses, and he intended to enjoy every one of them.

Beth was feeling lightheaded watching the two men feed and seeing the reactions of the freshies to their bites. It made her wonder if she had looked like that when Josef had fed from her… then she decided she must have. Both women had collapsed at the end of the feeding, with delightfully satisfied smiles on their faces. Josef, having started his meal first, took his freshie out of the room and returned just as Mick was finishing with his.

They both watched Mick finish licking the bloody wrist, the heat in his eyes directed entirely at Beth. When Mick carried his meal to the waiting couch in the living room, Josef wasted no time. His mouth descended on Beth's, demanding from the start, and he pulled her effortlessly up and out of her chair and against his chest. As his tongue slid into her mouth she returned the kiss with equal intensity, picking up where they had left off in the limousine.

Beth then felt the press of another body at her back and Mick's arms sliding around her shoulders. His hand running through her hair combined with the feel of his lips on her ear, Josef's insistent kiss, and their obvious desire left her breathless for more. Mick pulled the soft velvet jacket back and over the shoulders, but the two vampires were pressed closely enough against her that it did not drop to the floor, it only pinned her arms to her sides. A part of Beth knew she should be afraid, trapped between two vampires who could easily kill her with only a small mistake, but instead she felt safe and loved by both of them.

Finally, Josef pulled back and Mick seized the opportunity to claim her mouth and turn her towards him. Josef pulled Beth's jacket off of her arms and set it over the back of one of the chairs, quickly followed by his own. The tie and cummerbund were only a moment behind, but Josef found himself unable to take his eyes off of Mick and Beth. Mick's face was reverent as he kissed her in ways he hadn't dared before, tasting the skin of her neck and no longer hesitant to feel the blood just underneath it. It was like watching someone lose their virginity, and in a way it was for Mick, he supposed.

With her shoulders now bare, Josef's fingertips traced light circles over the smooth skin until Beth shivered and reached one hand back to him, the other still on Mick's chest. She felt Josef's arm wrap around her waist, just touching the underside of her breasts, tightening to hold her still as he pulled her head gently back to rest on his shoulder. Mick had begun to vamp out, letting Beth see him and know what he wanted from her. She nodded and Josef steadied her head, preparing to hold her still and safe for the bite. The sharp points of Mick's fangs grazed her neck and she whimpered, both fearing the pain and wanting the pleasure than would come after.

"Drink from her, Mick. She wants it. Don't you Beth?"

Beth knew without looking that Josef's vampire had responded to her as well. All she could say was a breathy, "yes, I want it."

Her words stirred something primal in Mick that he didn't want to admit to, but he'd longed to hear her beg for his bite. His fangs effortlessly pierced the vein and Beth's blood trickled into his mouth, filling him with a joy he didn't think he'd ever be able to feel as a vampire. Their first time had been too rushed, too urgent. This was languid, luxurious, and the blood went straight to his groin. Mick was glad that Josef would be there tonight, because he could lose himself in her completely. Her short cry of pain extended into one of wordless pleasure as she was caught between the muscular bodies that promised even greater pleasure.

Josef didn't have to tell him to stop, Mick knew it was time after only a few small mouthfuls. There was something rude about not letting Josef lick the wound he'd made, and when he opened his eyes, Mick could see the need plain on Josef's face. Mick stepped back just as a small trickle of blood slid down Beth's neck and the two vampires watched it with fascinated stares.

"Go ahead, Josef. She's delicious," Mick invited the older vamp. Beth just quietly begged him to drink, almost in a whisper.

Not needing to be asked twice, Josef bent his head and sucked at the neat punctures, drawing a long moan from Beth and a fresh wave of desire from her. They held her up as Josef finished his small taste, and when the wounds had closed over and he'd licked up all of the blood from her neck, Josef's face became human again. Mick pulled off his tie and threw his jacket aside, picking up the still weak-kneed Beth in his arms and headed for the stairs that would take them to Josef's bedroom.

Josef hesitated for a moment, his fingers lingering over something in his pocket while he watched them. A momentary pang of jealousy was all he could allow himself before Mick's voice brought him out of his reverie.

"Aren't you coming, Josef?" Mick asked, already knowing what the answer would be. He'd seen the look on Josef's face and knew his friend wouldn't miss a night in bed with Beth for all the money he possessed.

As Josef headed for the stairs, taking them two at a time, he replied, "quite a few times, I imagine."


	8. Chapter 8

By the time Mick reached the top of the stairs, Josef had caught up with them

By the time Mick reached the top of the stairs, Josef had caught up with them. The two men glanced down at Beth, still cradled up against Mick's chest, then at each other. Though neither of them spoke, they clearly had come to an understanding about Beth, that they would keep her safe from each other, they would put aside any possessiveness for tonight, and help her understand how to keep herself safe while still enjoying the pleasures only vampires could provide. The fact that she wanted to be with them, with vampires, was still amazing to Mick, but he could no longer fool himself into thinking that what Beth really wanted was a human lover.

She had opened her eyes by the time they reached Josef's bedroom, and was amazed at what awaited her. Dark blue satin sheets covered a larger than king sized bed that had been sprinkled liberally with red rose petals. Half a dozen soft pillows in matching satin pillowcases waited there, though the middle two each had a single red rose laid across them. Hundreds of candles lit the room with a soft glow, while thick dark blue velvet curtains blocked out the remains of the daylight from the window. There were two bottles of water on ice next to the bed on a small nightstand along with an unopened bottle of champagne. She couldn't help but smile and the two men who had obviously gone through quite a bit of trouble to make the setting as romantic as possible, and it had certainly had the desired effect.

Mick set her down at the foot of the bed and asked her, "so, what do you think?"

Beth looked around once more, feeling her desire stir again. "It's perfect, really. Thank you."

"I'd do anything for you, you know that." Mick's eyes were soft and kind. "I love you."

Those words seemed to release a tension in her she didn't know she'd been carrying. Beth smiled as she said, "I love you too, Mick," and she pulled his head down to hers for a kiss.

Something soft was gently caressing her neck and her now bare shoulders, in slow, languid lines. Beth heard Josef's quiet, desire-filled voice then. "Aww, that's so nice for the two of you. But no forgetting about me. I'm your designated driver tonight, remember?"

Beth pulled back from Mick and looked up into Josef's eyes. "How disappointing," she said with mock disapproval. "Here I was hoping that you were going to be having another drink, or two tonight, Josef. You said all I have to do is ask."

"So I did," Josef replied as Beth turned towards him, Mick's body sliding around behind hers, the backs of his hands brushing against the sides of her breasts. The rose in Josef's hand never stopped moving, the delicateness of the touch contrasting with the strength they all knew was carefully contained. She shivered as the rosebud teased the sensitive skin between the diamond and emerald necklace Josef had given her and the top of her dress.

Sensing the apprehension, Mick whispered to her, "don't worry, I removed all the thorns. Josef can play his little game with the rose as long as he likes and it won't hurt you."

Josef looked stunned for a moment and examined the stem in his hand, throwing a menacing glance at Mick. "Killjoy," he said to his friend, and the two exchanged a small laugh before Josef tossed the flower aside and gathered Beth into his arms.

"In that case, we'll have to skip one of my favorite parts," he said, feigning a pout that did nothing to diminish the hunger in his eyes. Josef's kiss was insistent and demanding, his tongue brushing the insides of Beth's lips, but she was ready for him and returned the kiss by running her tongue along the underside of his canine teeth, where his fangs would descend once his hunger peaked. Her hands pushed the formal white shirt back off his shoulders so she could explore the hard expanse of his chest. Then she felt the brush of Mick's chest against her back and knew that his shirt had joined Josef's on the floor. Caught between their muscled lengths, Beth was having trouble thinking clearly… there was too much flesh, too many hands on her, too much that felt so good.

Finally, the kiss ended as Josef's head moved lower, down to the top of her breasts, his fingertips brushing her sensitive nipples through the impossibly soft velvet of the dress. Mick's lips were on her neck as he deftly lowered the zipper on her dress and slowly let it fall down into a pool of green around her feet. Standing there nearly naked all of a sudden, next to two men whose skin temperatures were below normal, she felt a small chill in spite of the heat building within her.

Josef picked her up easily and laid her down on the softness of the bed and the rose petals, settling in next to her on his side, head propped up on one hand. A satin comforter was pulled up over them all as Mick joined them, taking her other side in a mirror image of Josef. The older vampire took his time looking over her body, teasing her with the lightest touches in her most sensitive areas, all the while watching her face, judging her reaction.

It became clear in the next few minutes that Josef was going to be the patient lover and Mick the passionate one. Not that Josef wasn't passionate, she'd felt his need in the limo and again downstairs, and Beth couldn't help but think it was just his promise to keep her safe that made him hold back. That's something she'd have to work on later, though, because Mick's mouth was on her nipple, his tongue alternating between short licks and increasing suction until she arched her back up into him and moaned. Of their own accord, her hands came up to hold his head in place when he moved to the other nipple, but in doing so she'd rolled slightly onto her side towards Mick.

Josef took the opportunity to rid her of the already superfluous strapless bra and kiss up the side of her neck, lingering on his bite wound, occasionally letting her feel his teeth there or on her earlobe just hard enough to leave her wondering if he was going to take her blood again. He knew he could at any time and she'd never make a move to stop him, as if she could anyway. Josef forced that thought back from his mind and concentrated on showing her just how appreciative he was of the invitation to enjoy her body tonight. He was pleased that he'd insisted that she only be allowed to wear stockings, not panty hose this evening, because he so enjoyed the game of removing them, revealing each inch of skin as she waited for his touch. He deftly snapped open the metal clips on the leg closest to him, rolling it down very slowly and holding her leg still while he kissed each inch of revealed skin, loving how her slight struggles seemed to allow him to draw her knees further apart.

The graze of teeth on her nipples drew a whimper from her lips, making Beth wonder if Mick was going to bite her there. As he watched the reaction on her face with his very human eyes, he considered that possibility, but there was so much else he wanted to do to her first. He knew that each time he and Josef drank from her, the closer they drew to the end of enjoying her body, and Mick intended for that to be many hours of sex from now, he thought as his hand slid lower to feel the wetness of the thin silk between her legs. Her reaction was worth everything they'd been through to get to this point. She raised her hips up into his hand, encouraging the friction there, and the long low moan that escaped her lips was accompanied by a new wave of aroused scent. The knowledge that he could make Beth feel that way was better than any rush he'd ever had as a human or vamp. He could feel how close she was to coming, held there at the brink, but it was too soon so he removed his hand after another few seconds. She protested by pushing him onto his back and kneeling while trying to unbuckle his belt with her shaking hands.

Josef had finished with her stockings, already having removed the remainder of his clothing, and he settled for shredding each side of her skimpy underwear in his hands and removing the tatters. His fingers found her slick with wetness and two fingers slid in easily despite of how tight she was. The distraction from trying to remove Mick's tuxedo pants was deliberate, if petty, but Josef was anxious for another turn as the center of Beth's attention. With a solid grip on her upper body and his fingers still inside of her, he flipped her onto her back.

"Take off your own pants, Mick," Josef told his friend with his usual self-satisfied grin. "I have other plans for your girlfriend." As Josef looked down at Beth, naked before them both and so eager, the need on Josef's face was plain. After four hundred years, he'd never lost his sense of wonder at moments like this, seeing this gorgeous woman stretched beneath him, wanting his touch. It didn't matter that there was another man there, her look of desire at that moment was for him.

"I'll bet you do," Mick responded, immediately rejoining them on the bed minus the rest of his clothing. Sometimes being a vampire had its advantages. "Superman has nothing on me." He smiled to himself as his hand entwined in Beth's long hair and he kissed her deeply, his fingers teasing her nipples once again.

Josef lowered his head and planted small kisses up the inside of each of her thighs, deliberately avoiding the place she most wanted his mouth. One of her hands ran over Mick's chest and down to find his hard length, drawing a low moan from him that made Josef stop to check that Mick's vampire was under control. Satisfied with the reassuring human glance, Josef returned to licking up and down the delicate folds between his lover's legs, his fingers never still inside of her. When his mouth finally found the hard nub that her body was begging him to touch, Beth's breathing became short gasps for air then a long moment where she seemed to forget how to breathe. As her orgasm crashed through her, Josef never stopped the relentless movements of his mouth or his hand, keeping her there for longer than she thought possible.

The look of joy on Beth's face made Mick realize he'd never seen anything so beautiful. At that moment, he wanted her more than he'd ever wanted any woman, vampire or human. Just as she started to relax from her high, Josef's face shifted and he struck quickly at her inner thigh, the motions of his hand never stopping to give Beth any respite. The smell of her blood was thick in the room by the time Josef had brought her screaming a second time as he pulled the blood from her body as he had her orgasms. Mick had to admit that four hundred years of experience with women seemed to be paying off well for Beth.

Carefully trying to hold off his own bloodlust, Mick tried to make sure than Josef wasn't taking too much from her, but after just a few mouthfuls Josef raised his head and met Mick's gaze. Josef's lips were still smeared with blood, his eyes pale blue and the rumbling in his chest almost too low for human ears. The bite in Beth's thigh was still bleeding slowly, and Josef bent his head for one last lick of her clitoris before gently removing his fingers from inside of her and sliding up her body to rest by her side.

Josef could see the conflict in Mick, wanting to taste her blood and take her with her blood still in his mouth, but he was trying to force his face back to its human appearance, trying desperately to ignore the intoxicating smell of her and the memory of what her blood tasted like a short time ago.

"Don't, Mick," Josef cautioned. He bent down to kiss Beth's mouth as his fingers danced lazily over her breasts. Mick couldn't take his eyes off the blood on Beth's thigh, but he was trying to rein himself in. "She's not afraid of the big bad vampire, remember?" All this time Josef thought he would have to hold Mick back, but what he really needed was permission.

While Beth tried to remember how to breathe, Josef whispered in her ear, "you are so beautiful when you come. In fact, Mick wants to see it again I think." She smiled at Josef through half closed eyes, then moaned as Mick's mouth found the blood on her thigh, sucking on the wound, the sensation hovered between pleasure and pain so close on the heels of two powerful orgasms. Mick wanted to bury himself inside of her right then, but all he could see was a very fragile human spread out before him, waiting for him to take her. He licked the wounds until they closed, savoring the taste of her blood, full of life and love. She was so trusting of him, of Josef, but Mick was worried that he would get carried away and hurt her… this was the time when many vamps lost control and killed their human partners.

As if he knew what was going through Mick's mind at that moment, Josef interceded. "Lie back and think of England, Mick." The slight snicker in his voice was all Josef. "You aren't going to hurt her."

The whisper in Beth's ear that Josef knew drove her crazy was again teasing her. "Time to show Mick what he's been missing," Josef said after his tongue finished a quick exploration of her mouth. The promise of the fulfillment of one of her greatest desires was enough for Beth to gather her strength and pull herself up to her knees beside Mick. She looked down at him with a look of hunger more suited to a vampire having caught their prey than Mick wanted to admit. Beth had wanted him like this for months, and she knew she was finally going to have him.

Beth leaned down to kiss him as her smooth leg slid across his hardness to settle on his opposite side. With her hands on Mick's chest and Josef steadying her hips, she slid down slowly onto his waiting length, adjusting to his size with a look of pure pleasure on her face. Her heat, her wetness, how tight she was exceeded any of the fantasies that Mick had tried to satisfy himself with over the last few months. He thrust up into her carefully, drawing a short moan from her each time. Happy that she didn't seem to break from their slow but steady pace, he slid his hands up her legs to guide her movements and pull her down onto him further.

Her eyes closed as Josef's hands and mouth found her breasts, overloading her senses again. "More, please… harder," she begged both of them, and she knew without looking that hers was the only human face in the room. Mick's increasing pace and his fingers delicately rubbing her in time to his thrusts built a delicious pressure low in her pelvis.

The coolness of Josef's mouth on her breasts was so unlike anything she'd experienced with a human, and it was as if there was a direct line from her nipples to the pleasure center of her brain. Josef was holding her upper body close and gently pushing her down onto Mick as his speed increased. Beth reached for Josef's hard length and wrapped her hand around him, letting the motion of the rest of her body move her hand up and down. While one arm stayed around her hips, Josef's other hand closed over hers, guiding her along his length. The look on his face let Beth know just what her touch did to him. The fact that as a novice to their world she could satisfy two vampires, especially one as experienced as Josef, brought her closer to coming.

Sensing how near Beth was, Mick sat upright and somehow managed to get to his knees still firmly sheathed in her tight wetness. The change in angle made his thrusts deeper and put pressure right where she needed it. His hands encircled her back, holding him up against his body as he kissed her neck and felt her eagerness. "I love you, Beth," he whispered to her as he felt his own orgasm approaching.

Her hands touched the sides of Mick's face, and she rested her head on his shoulder while he continued to thrust into her, making it difficult for her to think of anything except how good he felt inside of her and how she wanted tonight to go on forever. "I love you too," she said quietly, but meant every word. This climax was building slower than the previous ones, but promised to be even stronger. She relaxed in to Mick's strong grasp, knowing that he loved her, trusting him to keep her safe.

Their closeness forced Josef to relinquish his attention to her breasts and move behind Beth to pin her arms to her sides with just the press of his upper arms against hers as he kissed the side of her neck, nipping lightly at the skin there but not giving her what she craved. In the back of her mind Beth knew Josef was preparing her for Mick's bite, holding her still, making certain that she wouldn't fight against him or thrash around in the throes of pleasure and cause too much damage, but what registered in her mind was that she was being held, fully pinned and helpless between the two sexiest men she'd ever met. That reality brought her screaming her pleasure as wave after wave of ecstasy crashed over her.

Mick was only a second behind, his fangs piercing her neck, not able to get enough of her blood. Each time he swallowed it increased and prolonged the climax, as did Beth's screaming out her own release. But he knew he couldn't keep taking blood from her, and just as he was pulling himself back he heard Josef's voice.

"Mick. That's enough." It was a quiet, calm request. Josef was pleased that Mick was able to stop himself when he did, and not only because it was his turn to enjoy the exquisite woman writhing against him.

Mick's fangs retracted and his eyes returned to their normal human blue, but Josef's need was still raw and obvious in his pale blue eyes. He'd been waiting very patiently, and his control was at an end. As soon as Beth seemed to still and calm somewhat, he gently lifted her up and off of Mick, laying her down on her back next to the man she loved. Josef saw how they looked at each other even now, and felt a small pang of jealousy, but he knew that at the very least he could refocus her attention on what he could do for her right at that moment.

He slid into her effortlessly and gave her no further rest, taking her hard and fast while tasting the drops of blood at Mick's most recent bite. The low growl in his chest tightened something low in Beth's body and made her involuntarily lift her hips to meet his, her arms reaching around his back to pull his upper body closer. She had never come so much in her life, and couldn't believe Josef was coaxing yet another from her. The angle was just perfect so that every time he plunged into her he pressed against her G-spot, then filled her completely. Moving from her neck to claim her mouth, Josef's need for her, for his own release was nearly frantic, but he held back until her inner walls started to spasm around him.

At that moment he lowered his head and bit her on the top of her right breast, quite close to the nipple, a very sensitive spot that Beth hadn't expected but found to be very much to her liking once the blood was flowing. It was as if Josef's mouth engulfed her nipple and sucked on it hard while drinking from her, taking her breath away with the intensity of those mingled sensations. They rode their intense pleasure together for what seemed like forever, though only a few moments, but they shared a perfect bliss where nothing else mattered.

Mick was gently kissing Beth's face and lips as they finally came down, and Josef rolled to her other side. Josef found himself feeling truly happy for the first time since Sara hadn't met him on the other side of her death, and Beth's sincere kiss along the side of his neck made everything seem right with the world. It was the kiss not only of a lover, but of genuine affection. She turned to snuggle up against Josef's chest, pulling Mick's arm around her waist and encouraging him to settle against her back. Within a minute, held there between her two vampires, Beth fell into an even, contented sleep. Josef knew it wouldn't last, but for one night, this was heaven.


	9. Chapter 9

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed the story so far. Please keep the reviews um... coming. ;-) - Laurelin

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Josef pressed himself to Beth's back, his arm around her waist, and covered them both with the satin comforter

Josef pressed himself to Beth's back, his arm around her waist, and covered them both with the satin comforter. The chill in the room wouldn't bother him, but he did enjoy the feel of her warm, sleeping body pressed up against his, even through the thin silk of his sleeping pants. Her breathing was deep and regular, her heart beat strong and steady, reassuring Josef that they hadn't taken too much blood from her. It was a shame she was human in a way, because they wouldn't be able to repeat their evening's activities every night without risking her health. As he closed his eyes and inhaled her sweet scent, Josef hoped that someday Mick would have the sense to turn Beth. They both knew she would ask for it at some point, though in Josef's opinion, Mick was in denial about just how soon that might be.

Although Josef knew she needed some rest, he also knew she'd been asleep for two hours and hadn't had anything to drink. He wanted her well hydrated, and soon, because it would mean he could take blood from her again, as well as enjoy the other pleasures of her body. In spite of the fact that he'd had considerably more fresh sustenance today than normal, he still hungered for another taste of her. Propping himself up on one elbow, he studied her as she lay sleeping, trying to memorize every detail of her face and her still naked body.

Ten minutes must have passed as he just lay there and enjoyed being so close to this woman who belonged to his best friend, his only real friend. Josef had honestly hoped that after this he'd be able to call Beth a friend as well, but somehow he didn't think he'd be able to ever look at her and not have the memories of this night at the forefront of his mind. The sound of her crying out in pleasure as he buried himself inside of her was not going to be something he easily forgot.

Josef's fingertips brushed lightly along Beth's arm and he leaned forward to kiss the small puncture marks on the side of her neck, the ones he'd left when she'd asked him to taste her blood that first time. The bites only made her more beautiful, he decided, but they would heal soon enough and be replaced only by Mick's marks. He was happy for Mick, really, but it was hard being here, naked and alone with Beth, and not wonder about what it would be like to be the sole object of her affections.

Stirring under his gentle touch, Beth snuggled up against him. As his hand strayed from the side of her arm to brush up against her breast, she smiled even though her eyes were still closed.

"Mick?" Beth said sleepily. Josef hand stopped its quiet exploration.

"I sent him to the freezer for a little while, but he'll be back in a few hours." Josef tried to pull himself together and retreat into his usual carefree façade, but he was grateful she couldn't see his face at that moment.

Beth sounded a little disappointed when she said, "oh, okay."

"He was here with you until just a little while ago, but I thought it might be better if he got some rest and another meal before joining you back in bed." Josef clenched his teeth and started to pull himself back from Beth, physically and emotionally. He sat up and stretched all the way over to the nightstand to get a cold bottle of water, opening it for her. When he turned back to make his attempts at getting her to drink, Josef found that she'd followed him the extra foot or two across the bed and was beginning to make herself comfortable cuddled up against his chest. He couldn't put his arm down without touching her, and there was a moment where he could do nothing but close his eyes and try to control himself. His vampire was no danger to Beth; he was well fed and practiced. It was his heart that he was worried about.

Beth felt him tense under her touch, which was completely unlike the Josef she knew from just a few hours ago. Where were the seductive comments, the expert touch of his hands that so recently had made her body burn for him?

"What's wrong?" she asked him then slowly pulled away. "Did I do something… or… not do something?" Beth knew somewhere she'd break some unwritten vampire bedroom rule. It's not like there was a handbook or anything.

The open bottle of water was pressed into her hand and her fingers closed around it. "Of course not, Beth, you were perfect," he said as he kissed the back of her other hand lightly. There was a vulnerability in Josef's eyes that she'd never seen before, even though the rest of his face was solidly the overconfident vampire she was used to. "But now you need to drink some water. You'll be dehydrated from the blood loss. And no, we didn't take too much. Mick was quite able to control himself, and I have to admit that I may have underestimated him a little."

The water tasted so good it made Beth realize that she must have been a lot thirstier than she'd thought. Josef watched her finish the bottle then got up and started to walk towards the door.

"You aren't staying with me until Mick gets back?"

Josef wasn't sure what to say. Yes? He wanted to stay more than anything at that moment, stay and make love to her again, but he doubted Mick would be happy about not being included, even if he did need the time on ice. Josef seriously doubted his ability to just stay in bed with her and not make love to her.

"I'm thinking that it may be nobler to avoid temptation than try to resist it in this case."

Beth looked confused. "I don't understand."

He sat down on the edge of the bed next to her and handed her another bottle of water. Josef opened the lowest drawer of the nightstand and poured himself a scotch, but said nothing for a minute as he studied his drink.

"It means that I don't think I'll be able to just stay here with you and make small talk or let you sleep. If I stay here I'll want you again, and I don't think Mick will be very happy about me seducing the woman he's in love with. So maybe it would just be better if I waited downstairs until Mick wakes up."

After downing the scotch in two large gulps, Josef was upset to find he didn't feel any better. He set the glass down and smiled at Beth, marveling at how fast she could make him hard as she was stretched out in his bed against the soft satin sheets, naked. When he went to get up again, Beth's hand was on his, pulling him gently back towards her.

"Stay, Josef. It's okay. I kind of got the impression that the usual rules didn't apply today, and that whatever happens between us happens."

"And where did you get that impression, hmmm?" Josef teased.

"From Mick, as he carried me up the stairs. He told me… let me see if I can get this right… 'Don't worry about me being jealous of Josef. I know you're attracted to him and it's okay to do what feels good to you tonight.'"

Josef wondered how he had missed that conversation. Then he remembered feeling a little pre-occupied just before they went upstairs.

"If I'd only known sooner… I wouldn't have let you sleep as long." Mick's words were a gift from Heaven, assuming there was such a place for him outside of this bedroom. Though, honestly, he didn't believe that Mick meant it was okay for him to enjoy the carnal pleasures of his girlfriend while he was napping. Then again, Josef had always subscribed to the belief that it was easier to apologize than to ask permission.

The glass slipped out of his hand and was forgotten on the floor as he moved quickly on top of Beth, her wrists in his hands, pressing her down into the soft bed. His touch was firm but not painful, and she relaxed easily into it, waiting for his next move. The wait was short. His mouth was on hers, demanding and insistent, letting Beth know just how much he wanted her at that moment.

The scent of her arousal permeated the room, threatening to overwhelm him, driving his need. Right or wrong, Josef was going to have her, consequences be damned. He kissed down the side of her neck and lower to her breasts, teasing each sensitive nipple until she cried out, keeping her just at the border between pleasure and pain. Finally, he released her hands as he moved lower, pleased but not surprised to find her slick with wetness already. Immediately, she moved to touch his face with her hands, trying to bring his mouth down onto her. Two of his fingers slid easily inside and curled upward, finding that most sensitive area within her, making her gasp and arch up into his hand. He explored her folds with his lips and tongue, finally settling on the area she was most desperate for. After just a few minutes of his expert touch, Josef knew she was close, and he backed off slightly.

"Please don't stop. Please." She was breathless and so needy, just the way he wanted her. He smiled up at her, his expression one of confidence in his ability and her reaction to it, and slowly added a third finger though he kept his hand still otherwise.

"But if I keep going, you'll come too soon. You're going to have to work a little for this one." As if to emphasize his point his fingers curled up and hit her G-spot once again, drawing a cry of pleasure from her as she tried in vain to convince him with her hips to let her come.

Fully expecting to hear her beg again, which is what he wanted to hear, Josef was surprised when she sat up and pulled his head up and kissed him passionately. Although it would have been a simple thing for him to resist her when she tried to push him back onto the bed, he really had no desire to. He wanted her, all of her, and whatever she wanted to do to him at that moment he knew he would enjoy. So he lay back with his head propped up on one of the satin-encased pillows and waited. The predatory look in her eye was everything he'd come to expect from a vampire partner, not a human, and it made him that much harder to see it in Beth's eyes.

"Challenge accepted," she said simply before leaning down to kiss the sides of his neck, taking some of the skin between her teeth and biting down, though not hard enough to break the skin. Now it was his turn to cry out for her. It was enough to raise Josef's vampire, and Beth looked up in time to see his eyes change. He started to sit up but she put a hand on his chest and pushed down, her body language saying that she fully expected him to comply, and that she wasn't afraid of him.

Forcing his visage back to human, knowing that it wasn't yet time to take blood from her, Josef waited and tried to be content with touching her face and her sweet-smelling hair. But she would have none of it, and took his wrists, holding them down on either side of his head, mirroring his quite successful attempt at pinning her down a short time ago.

"I know you're strong enough to do whatever you want to me," she whispered in his ear, "but for right now, please keep your hands to yourself."

Not waiting for his reply, Beth teased him with her lips, teeth, and tongue over his ears, neck, nipples, and then followed the trail of his hair lower to find him hard and eager for her, straining up against the silk pants. Keeping still was getting more and more difficult for Josef. Everything about her made him want to flip her over and bury himself inside of her until they both screamed out their pleasure.

Beth pulled the silk off of his hips easily and wrapped her hand around him, slowly stroking him up and down, all the while watching his face, gauging his reaction, finding what made him close his eyes and push up into her hand. There was no Heaven other than this room, Josef knew as soon as the hot wetness of her mouth engulfed him. He gripped the headboard with both hands and tried desperately to comply with her request, but she felt so good that it was getting increasingly difficult not to touch her. Just as he was close to his release, she backed off for a moment, only stroking him lightly with her hand until he settled, then again letting him enjoy the feel of her mouth on him.

"You… win…" Josef said finally. "I give up." He couldn't think of anyone he'd rather give in to.

Her smile as she crawled up his body tightened something in his chest. She was so beautiful in her desire at that moment it was almost painful for him to look at her. Since they'd reached a truce, Josef's arms were quickly back around her, pulling her to him for a deep and needy kiss, his thumbs on each of her nipples in turn, his touch like fire on her skin.

Letting him feel the wetness at the entrance to her body, rubbing herself against his length until he moaned out of desire and frustration, Beth teased him for another moment before finally sinking down onto his shaft. Her face held a look of pure pleasure as she began to slowly move over him, and he reached down between them to add pressure to her sensitive clitoris. He held off as long as he could, until he brought her screaming his name over and over before pulling her down to pierce the skin of her neck. The hot, sweet blood that poured into his mouth triggered his own intense release. The two of them were suspended there in completely surrender to their need for what seemed like an impossibly long time. Josef hadn't come so hard in so long he couldn't remember.

With the last drops of blood cleaned from her neck, Josef lay back and just held her against his chest, inhaling the scent of her and burning it into his memory. No words were needed as they lay in each others arms, enjoying the pleasant exhaustion that their lovemaking had induced.

Josef held her there for over an hour after she'd fallen into a contented sleep, all the while knowing that his time with her was running out.

He placed a gentle kiss on her forehead and covered her with the comforter before silently exiting the room. Josef knew that Hell was the price for this night, but it had been worth it.


	10. Chapter 10

Before you read this, I'd like to point out the genre tags in the description of this story. Angst, yes, angst. So don't say I didn't warn you. This is Josef's story, not Mick's, not Beth's. Sometimes doing what is right means doing what hurts you the most. - Laurelin

There was banging, and shouting, and his name being called, but it took Mick a minute to figure out where he was. Waking up to a cacophony in a strange freezer was rather disorienting, but finally Mick remembered. He'd just had great sex with Beth, the woman he loved more than life, and he'd fallen into a contented sleep about… he looked at his watch… two hours ago.

Mick popped the lid of the freezer and found Josef looking… angry. "Everything okay, Josef? Is Beth…?"

Josef's face softened a bit when he answered. "She's fine, Mick, if a little tired. She's sleeping quite contentedly, in fact."

Mick stood, visibly relieved, and grabbed his pants from the nearby chair. "Then why do you look like you're ready to rip someone's heart out?"

Interesting that he should put it that way, Josef thought, while he took care to school his features back to neutral. He turned to Mick, and prepared himself for the inevitable beating that was to come, content with the idea that he wasn't going to fight back. "I slept with Beth while you were in the freezer. It was completely my fault. I seduced her, so please don't blame her for it. I'm sorry, Mick."

"I expected nothing less, and honestly, I doubt she did either. So why are you so upset about it?" Mick looked comfortable with the idea in a way that Josef found disturbing under the circumstances.

"Because you're supposed to be mad!" Josef's anger was getting the better of him, and the decibel level was increasing. "You're supposed to tell me how I wasn't supposed to touch her without you there. You're supposed to tell me how she's yours, dammit!" He was upset because there was going to be no confrontation, no way to rid himself of the sin against his friend. The worse part was that Mick didn't see it as a sin at all, and neither did Beth. They would give no penance, no absolution.

"Calm down, Josef," Mick said as he pulled his shirt on. "She had my permission today to do whatever felt good, with either one or both of us. And I trust you with her. You're careful and even considerate of her needs. Now, it's just for today… and if all goes well maybe tomorrow, and then we'll have to see if you think I'm safe enough to be alone with her."

"Great." He sat down on the floor and tried to regain some composure. "Really. Great." The mock enthusiasm didn't reach his eyes, or for that matter his voice, and it wasn't fooling Mick. They'd known each other too long.

Mick combed some of the frost out of his hair while trying to give Josef a moment to collect his thoughts and get himself back together.

Josef stood up and smoothed the sides of his neatly pressed khakis with his palms. "You're ready to be alone with her now, Mick. You won't forget how much you love her, and as long as you are well fed, on fresh blood and not that morgue slop, you'll be able to control yourself. I'm not worried about you, though I think after today you'll have to give her at least a week to replace some of the blood she's lost. Then just keep the feeding to a minimum each time and she'll be fine. I'll make my freshies available to you on a rotating schedule so that there are always two on call at any given time, and they can meet you at Beth's, or your place, or here for that matter. You're welcome to the suite anytime you want, and I'll make sure you have a set of keys to the house in the next few hours." Giving directions seemed to help Josef focus, even if his mind was racing. But order helped. Making preparations was preferable to wallowing in self pity, as far as he was concerned.

Mick looked at him, really looked at him, for the first time since he'd been summoned out of the freezer. Something was terribly wrong. "Josef, what happened?"

Josef only smiled at him, but it was a smile full of loss and sorrow, not so much a smile at all. It was the expression of someone resigned to their personal Hell. Beth was everything he couldn't have, not just now, but for the last fifty years, the last four hundred years. He'd been denied the love of his life in Sara, and he knew he had no place keeping Beth and Mick apart. Jealousy was part of his sadness, but it was mostly that seeing Mick and Beth happy together rubbed salt into his long-standing wounds. Wounds that were never going to heal, he finally admitted to himself. They deserved to be loved, both of them, but Josef couldn't stand there watching them and pretend to be happy.

"Go to her Mick," Josef finally replied, ignoring Mick's question. "She's awake now, can't you feel it? She's waiting for you. Just promise me something."

The seriousness on his friend's face worried Mick, because there was nothing left of his usual cocky humor. "Sure, Josef. Anything."

"When Beth asks, and she will ask, turn her. Don't deny her eternity with you."

Mick started to protest but was stopped by Josef's upraised hand. "The fact that she loves you means she doesn't hate what you are. She loves who and what you are, and she'll want eternity with you. Don't screw this up."

By the time Mick thought about what he was saying, Josef was halfway down the hall. "What about now though? You might think I'm safe with her, but I'm not... Josef?"

He didn't turn around, merely stopped in the hallway to give his answer. "I'll be in the house. Her blood is in my veins. I'll know if something is wrong," he said quietly, then turned to go downstairs.

"Josef?" Mick asked, but received no reply other than the quiet sound of footsteps on the stairs.

Sitting alone in his dressing room, Josef couldn't help but feel like a bystander at a car accident. He wanted to look away, hold his hands over his ears, ignore what was happening one floor above him, pretend that Beth and Mick weren't in the shower enjoying the pleasures of each others' bodies, that they weren't whispering endearments to each other. But he couldn't look away. At any other time he would have insisted on joining them, and part of him still wanted to, but what he really wanted was to give himself over to the dreamless sleep that was a gift to his kind, maybe for an extended time. There was to be no reprieve today. He'd promised Beth he'd keep her safe and happy, and from the sound of it, she was more than happy to be alone with Mick. Her cries of pleasure were untainted by fear, or pain, or loss. Mick was no danger to her… hadn't been that time in the desert when he was very hungry, and certainly wasn't now when he was well fed.

How things had changed so much so quickly… from the time Beth asked him about vampires and humans being intimate, to him sitting here alone and still, waiting for Mick and Beth to finish their lovemaking so he could go… he had no idea. He'd thrown a couple of suits and a casual change of clothes into a garment bag along with his shaving kit and an extra pair of shoes. That's all there was to his time here. That's all there was to take with him.

Now he waited. God, he was tired of being alone. He was just… tired. He'd heard the old ones speak of this moment but he hadn't believed he'd ever be the one experiencing it. It was the turning point, the beginning of the end. It was the time when eternity was no longer a gift, but a curse. Beth belonged with Mick, and Mick deserved to have her. Sara would never be his again, and he was just holding onto hope out of a childish naivety. He'd missed his chance, but he'd be damned if he was going to interfere with the chance that Mick and Beth had. He couldn't stay here and keep that promise.

Being so close to her today, being so close to that soul-soothing comfort and knowing that he was still welcome upstairs if he chose… knowing that he couldn't go back… the contrast just made the loneliness worse. There was no longer any anger left inside of him, just emptiness. Resignation. It was time to go. It was time to let go.

When the water had been turned off and he felt Beth's contented mood as she rested her head against Mick's chest, Josef finally stood and picked up his bag and the small envelope he'd prepared. He threw his keys onto dining room table in front of where Mick had left his tuxedo jacket and shoes. In front of where Beth had left her handbag. Josef placed the small envelope into her purse and headed out to the waiting limo, his hand clenched around the antique ring in his pocket. He was going to miss L.A. and the only two friends he had.

Two days later

Beth hung up in her closet the velvet dress and jacket that Josef had given her and wondered where he'd gone, and why. He hadn't said goodbye to her, or to Mick; just snuck out like a thief into the night. She wasn't angry, she was worried, as was Mick.

She found a pocket for the shoes in the organizer on the back of her closet door, and turned to unpack the small purse that matched the dress. There hadn't been much in there, just some lipstick and powder, a few dollars for a theater program that she never got to buy.

Opening the purse, Beth was surprised to find a white envelope with her name written in the elegant hand of someone who had learned to write hundreds of years ago. She opened it slowly, revealing an emerald and diamond bracelet that was a match to the expensive necklace and earrings Josef had given her. There was a note with it, which Beth was honestly afraid to read. A tear fell down her cheek as she unfolded the delicate paper.

Dearest Beth,

I'm sorry that I am not able to stay with you any longer, but it is time for me to go. I am truly Fortune's fool.

If the day comes when you ask Mick to turn you, I sincerely hope that he will abide by your wishes. I have pleaded with him to do this so you may be together always. He loves you.

But if he should refuse, know that there is one more piece of jewelry to this set, surpassed in its beauty only by you. If you come to me to claim it, know that I will not deny you eternity with me. The caretaker at my New York address will know how to find me if that time comes, but I hope you are able to stay with the man you love.

Josef


End file.
